Fullmetal Alchemist: The Key To The Gate
by Kamiyaflower
Summary: Al's body has finally been restored and now he and Ed are living happily together in Central, until some new problems arrive. New adventures, new characters, romance, and a bit of humor. AlxOC and maybe other OC pairings later.
1. Chapter 1 Meeting

**Author's Note:**

- I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist or any of the characters, but I do own Kerria Vagans and Kashi Murasakiiro. They belong entirely to **ME**.

- This is my first FMA story and my first fanfiction. So please go easy on me.

-It seems that some people have been a bit confused about the timeline of this story so I have decided to add some info about that here.

I based the timeline on the Fan-made chinese FMA game, Bluebird's Illusion. For those of you who haven't played the game: Ed (17) and Al (16) are both living in central, Al has his full body back, but Ed still has automail. Also, I decided to make it so that Ed is now a Colonel in the military and Roy is Fuhrer...just because it was fun. XD So yes, that means no more homunculi. But don't worry, I still have my ways of making it intersting. grins (ooooo, teaser! XP) Oh, and the OCs Kerria and Kashi are 16 and 15.

**Hopefully I can avoid as many flames as possible. Thank you and enjoy!**

* * *

It was just another day in Central City. The people of the town could be seen hurriedly bustling about the place; shopping for groceries, cleaning their houses, and talking amongst their friends over a drink or a meal. One particular young girl carried a few bags filled with groceries in her arms on her way back home from the market. The bags were heavy, and she could barely see where she was going from behind them. But she was already late, so she hurried as fast as she could. Her shoulder-length mahogany hair with highlights of light blue at the ends flew behind her as she walked swiftly through the streets.

"Kerria! Working hard as usual I see." One of the shop owners called out to her as she passed. She stopped momentarily to turn and give him a bright smile. Her gentle, gray-blue eyes lit up with joy.

"Yes," she nodded. "I do my best!" then she bowed slightly and continued walking. Suddenly, something on the side of the road caught her eye and made her pause to look at it. A light gray kitten was napping on a nearby brick ledge. It curled up in the sun and yawned sleepily. Kerria blinked, staring at the small, fluffy feline. Anything cute or furry never failed in catching her attention. After a moment of staring, she couldn't resist any longer. She set her grocery bags down near the ledge and hopped up next to the kitten. The kitten lazily opened one eye and gazed at Kerria. She smiled brightly and gently tucked a few strands of her blue-streaked hair behind her ear. "Hey kitty, kitty." She sang softly, reaching out to pet it. Just as her hand got close enough to touch it, the cat leapt up from its position, jumped from the ledge, and ran off. Kerria looked after it sadly.

"Ah! Come back!" A voice called from beneath her. Kerria looked to where the sound had come from. Crouched down and peeking out from behind the ledge was a teenage boy, about the same age as she was. His short, sandy brown hair wafted slightly in the wind as he looked solemnly in the direction the cat had run. "Aw…it's gone." he said in disappointment. He suddenly felt Kerria's gaze, and looked up at her; his gloomy expression quickly brightened into a smile. "Hi," he said to her happily.

"Uh…hi." Kerria blinked.

"You like cats?" The boy asked her.

"Um…yes." she blushed slightly. "I was just on my way home from shopping and I…couldn't resist stopping…"

The boy laughed slightly as he stood up and brushed himself off. "Same here. I'm Alphonse Elric." he bowed slightly.

Kerria smiled. "My name's…Kerria. Nice to meet you." Al glanced over at the giant bags of groceries Kerria had been carrying.

"Do you live nearby?" He questioned, thinking that those bags would be hard to carry for a long way.

"I…live sort of close by." Kerria replied. "Well…I live with the people who took me in…but I've never really had a real home." She stared at the ground, not sure why she was telling this to a complete stranger. But she never had anyone to talk to before, so it actually felt good to speak her mind. Al stared at her for a moment, then picked up his own small bag and put it over his shoulder before walking over to Kerria's bags and picking up one of them.

"I'll help you carry these." He smiled, turning to her. "They look heavy."

"Ah! No I can get them myself!" Kerria protested as she jumped down from the ledge. "You don't have to help."

"No, I want to help." Al shook his head. "Please, let me." Kerria looked at his big, dark green eyes and his hopeful expression. She suddenly felt as if she couldn't say "no" to him, and sighed.

"Oh…okay." She said in a defeated tone. Al smiled.

Kerria and Al walked up the path to the house where Kerria was staying. The house was relatively small, but still homey. It was a light yellow color with a gray roof and white windows. "Pretty house," Al remarked.

"Heh…it's alright." Kerria chuckled.

"Who do you live with here?"

"They're…they took me in when I had no where else to go. But they have a very large family so…I try not to bother them too much. They give me a home and in return I do work for them." Kerria explained. She tried not to show it but Al could still hear a hint of sadness in her voice. He could tell somehow that she didn't really enjoy living here. As they got closer to the house, two small boys came running around from the backyard, playing tag with one another. They stopped when they noticed Kerria and Al, and then ran in through the front door. "Um…You want to come inside?" Kerria asked Al when they reached the door. Al nodded, so Kerria opened the front door and the two of them carried the bags of groceries into the house. "I'm home!" Kerria called as she led Al into the kitchen. She set her bags down on the table, and Al did the same. Just then, a woman came into the kitchen and glared at Kerria.

"You're late!" she scolded. "It's been past dinner time for a while now, and we're all starving."

"I'm sorry." Kerria apologized. "I'll get on it right away." The woman glanced over at Al for a moment, then scowled and stomped out of the room. Kerria turned to him. "I'm sorry, Alphonse but I really have to get to work. Thanks again for helping me."

"No problem." Al smiled slightly. Kerria walked with him to the door where they said their goodbyes. Neither of them said it out loud, but they could tell that they were thinking the same thing. They both hoped to see each other again.

* * *

A few days passed since Kerria and Al's first meeting. Kerria's hopes of seeing him again seemed foolish at the moment, so she decided to simply focus on doing her chores and trying to keep from getting yelled at by her foster family. The time came once again for Kerria to run an errand for them, so the woman from before gave her some money and a list of things to buy, and Kerria set out to complete her task. She walked around the market doing her shopping, and noticed that this time there was a little less to carry. Which was a good thing since Al seemed to be nowhere in sight. She chuckled slightly at that thought, but then her expression slowly began to sadden. She had half hoped to see him again today. 

Suddenly, she heard a large commotion coming from nearby in the street. She turned to see a big and very noisy crowd gathered nearby; they all seemed to be watching something. Curious as to what was happening, Kerria walked over to the crowd and tried to see what was going on, but she was too short to see much. She did, however, catch a glimpse of what seemed to be two people fighting. One of them she figured was a shop owner, as he had an apron tied around his waist. The other she couldn't see too well, but he seemed pretty worked up; although she couldn't hear what they were saying over the noise of the crowd. Wanting to get a better look, she squeezed through the crowd until she finally made it to the front, and gasped at what she saw.

* * *

**A/N:** Okay well there's my short chapter 1! And a cliffie too...meheheh...Please review! 


	2. Chapter 2 Second Meeting

**A/N:** Yay! Chapter 2! It took me a long time to get it just right.lol. Well enjoy!

* * *

The shop owner was glaring down at a teenage boy, about the same age and size as Kerria was. His long, blonde hair was tied back into a ponytail, and his amber eyes were burning with anger. He was shouting at the shop owner and his right hand, which Kerria realized was automail, was clenched into a threatening fist. 

"Well it was your fault for shoving that nasty stuff in my face in the first place!" The boy yelled, pointing at a bottle of milk in the shop owner's hand.

"Look, kid. I'm just trying to do my job and sell my stuff." The shop owner said. "If ya weren't such a hotheaded pipsqueak then maybe this wouldn't have happened!"

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING SO SMALL THAT HE'S A MICROSCOPIC THING THAT DOESN'T SHOW UP IN YOUR EYES!" The boy screamed, waving his arms around angrily. The two of them continued to yell randomly at each other, and Kerria could do nothing but stare at them in confusion along with the rest of the crowd. Suddenly, someone began to push their way through the large circle of people on the side opposite from Kerria. He had a bag in his arms that was so large it covered his face, making it impossible for Kerria to see who he was.

"Brother!" He called. "Are you causing trouble again? You're supposed to be helping me carry this stuff!"

"Al, I'm a little busy right now!" The blonde boy exclaimed, turning to face him. Kerria's eyes widened upon hearing that name, and her suspicions were proven true when Al set the huge bag down on the ground, revealing his face. It was, without a doubt, the same Alphonse Elric Kerria had met only a few days before. Which meant that the aggressive blonde boy must be his brother, Kerria concluded. Al hastily apologized to the shop owner for his brother's actions and then dragged the lively boy away from the crowd in exasperation. Kerria quickly pushed her way through the group of people in an attempt to catch up with them. Finally, she spotted Al trying to calm his brother down not too far away.

"Really, Brother. You can't cause trouble like this every time we go somewhere." Al sighed. His brother was about to retort when Kerria came rushing up to them with a bright smile on her face.

"A-Alphonse!" She exclaimed, slightly breathless from running.

"Kerria?" Al questioned, a smile starting to appear on his face. "Wh-what are you doing here?"

"I had to run more errands." She explained. "But I never thought I would see you here again…what a coincidence!"

"Y-yeah…same here." Al grinned.

"Uh…Al? Care to explain this?" The blonde boy asked, pointing to Kerria. Al quickly explained to Ed how he had met Kerria a few days ago and helped her carry her groceries home.

"I see." The blonde said, turning to Kerria. "Well I'm his brother, Edward Elric." He pointed his thumb towards himself smugly. "I'm also the **Fullmetal Alchemist**." He purposefully emphasized his state alchemist second name with pride, as he always did.

"Who..?" Kerria blinked. Both Ed and Al's jaws dropped. The two brothers had built up quite a reputation in the past few years; it was strange that there was someone who hadn't heard of them before. Kerria noticed their surprised expressions and explained nervously. "I…don't really know much to tell you the truth. I have no memories of where I came from or who my parents were. About one month ago, my foster family found me on the streets and took me in. I can't remember anything from before that." As she spoke, her expression became more and more miserable. It really bothered her that she had only a month's worth of memories. Ed and Al exchanged glances for a moment, then Al stepped forward and placed his hand on Kerria's shoulder sympathetically. Kerria smiled a little.

The brothers invited her to come over to their house for dinner, so they walked to Kerria's house, she snuck in to set the bag of items she had bought on the table, and then they all walked back to the Elrics' house. Kerria stared at the beautiful house in awe as they walked up the path. It was a bit smaller than the house her foster family had, and it was a shade of light blue with a tan roof and white windows.

"It looks so…comfy." she commented.

"Ha ha…yes, it's very cozy." Al chuckled. Kerria looked up at him and smiled slightly.

"It must be nice…living with your brother and everything."

"Yes…it is." Al smiled, then he gave Ed a teasing, pouty look. "But Brother doesn't eat my cooking sometimes."

"Th-that's…!" Ed started to retort, then his expression softened and he looked at the ground. "It's just…I'm so busy…I have no time to eat a good meal." Kerria couldn't help giggling to herself. Al and Ed got along so well, it was easy to tell that they were very close.

When they got inside, Kerria helped Al cook dinner while Ed set the table. During the meal, the three of them talked happily with each other. Ed told Kerria all about the military and the hard work he had to go through; sorting paperwork, investigating, and most of all dealing with the very sarcastic Roy Mustang. At one point, Al chided Ed on how he complains too much, which made Kerria laugh in amusement. Al then asked if Kerria had ever heard of alchemy.

"Well actually, I…I can do a bit of alchemy myself." she replied, to the brothers' surprise.

"Really now?" Ed questioned. "What can you do?"

"Well…I'm pretty good at fixing things that are broken…and I can do some alchemy with water too. I can make it move where I want it to, or change shape…that sort of thing." Ed and Al exchanged looks. Kerria had suddenly become even more interesting to them. "But…" Kerria started. "I'm not very good at it. My foster family hates alchemy and stuff like that. They think it's better to do things with hard work instead of 'cutting corners'. So I can't practice around them." she stared down at the table sadly. Ed and Al glanced at each other again, then Al turned to look at Kerria and sighed.

By the time Kerria had made it back home, it was already very late. She quietly snuck in through the front door and into the living room, which had served as her bedroom since she first came to live there. She lay down on the sofa and thought about the fun time she had with the Elric brothers, then her eyelids began to feel heavy with fatigue and she slowly drifted off to sleep.

* * *

The next morning, Ed came out of his room and sleepily sat down to eat the breakfast Al made for him. He drowsily picked at his eggs with his fork, grumbling to himself about all the hard work he had to do and how Mustang had better be happy with him for it. 

"Good morning Brother." Al said cheerfully as he walked in, sat down across from Ed at the table and began eating his breakfast.

"Morning…" Ed mumbled.

"You really aren't a morning person, are you?" Al laughed. Ed went to get dressed in his uniform, and then left for Central Headquarters. Al sat down to read a book for a few hours, then looked up when he heard a knock on the door. "Coming!" He called, getting up and walking over to the door. He opened it, and was surprised to see Kerria standing there on the other side. "Kerria? What a surprise. Why are you here?"

"I…I'm sorry to show up on such short notice." Kerria started. Al noticed that her voice was shaky and she was wringing her hands nervously. "But I…I have nowhere else to go." Tears began to stream down her face, and she frantically tried to wipe them away before Al saw.

"Kerria…What happened?" Al asked, placing his hand on her shoulder. Kerria couldn't hold back any longer, and tears came pouring down her cheeks.

"I…I got kicked out of my house!" she cried, burying her face into Al's chest. Al looked at her in surprise for a moment, then brought her inside to try and calm her down.

* * *

"Wh-what?" Ed yelled into the office phone. "You can't be serious, Al. I…I don't have time right now to deal with this. Okay…she's asleep?" 

"Yes," Al replied. "I brought her in the house and she finally cried herself to sleep on the sofa." On the other line, Ed sighed deeply. "Brother," Al asked slowly. "what are we going to do?"

"I don't know, Al. We'll talk about it when I get home okay? Okay…bye." Ed hung up the phone and sighed.

"Ahh? Answering personal phone calls on the job, Fullmetal?" Roy said teasingly from the doorway.

"Ugh." Ed glared. "Not now." Even though Roy was now the Fuhrer, he still got a kick out of picking on Ed and laughing at his reactions. But this time, it seemed Ed really didn't want to be bothered.

"So what's the problem then?" Roy asked. Ed was about to tell him that it was none of his business, but decided against it, as he didn't feel like arguing at the moment.

"Well," he sighed. "There's this girl…"

"Ah!" Roy gasped in mock surprise. "I had no idea it was something like **that**! To think that the Fullmetal pipsqueak is having **girlfriend** troubles…"

"Not that kind of girl! And don't call me pipsqueak!" Ed yelled, blushing at the thought of what Roy had just said. Roy laughed in amusement.

Back at the Elrics' house, it was late in the afternoon and Kerria was just starting to wake up. She sat up on the sofa and rubbed her eyes, sniffling a bit. She felt a little better, thanks to Al comforting her, but she still had no idea where she could live from now on.

"Maybe…I could apologize." She said to herself. "Then maybe they'll let me back."

"I have a better idea." Al said from the doorway; Kerria spun around to look at him. He smiled and sat down next to her on the sofa. "Why don't you…stay here with us?" Kerria's eyes widened. "I'd have to talk to Brother about it first," Al continued. "But there's a spare room upstairs you can stay in if you want to. It used to be a bedroom when the people before us lived here, but we've just been using it for storage.

"But, I…I couldn't…I've already imposed on you two so much." Kerria protested.

"I know it might need some getting used to…living with two guys you just met and all." Al said nervously. "But it's really no trouble…I'm sure Brother will agree. And you said it yourself, you have nowhere else to go." Kerria stared at the ground and was silent for about a minute or two before finally speaking again.

"I…I'll help out with whatever I can." she started. "and I can get a job to pay for the extra water costs and such."

"Don't worry about that." Al assured her. "Since Brother's in the military, they take care of all that for us. We'll talk to him about it when he gets home." Kerria looked up at him and nodded, smiling. Al then questioned her about why she was forced to leave her house. Kerria explained that her foster parents had been threatening to get rid of her for a while, and then when she came home so late the night before, they told her she was worthless and to leave and never come back. Al frowned; he knew that people could be cruel, but somehow this just seemed over the top. It seemed that all Kerria ever was to these people was someone they could push around and force to do their bidding.

"So I thought about where I could go…and…well you and Edward are the closest things to friends I have." Kerria said solemnly. This made Al smile a little; he was glad that Kerria considered them her friends.

* * *

At first, Ed was reluctant towards Al's idea of letting Kerria live with them. But it was at this point that Kerria discovered Ed's weakness. As soon as Al looked his brother in the eye, gave him his best puppy dog face and said sweetly, "Please Brother?", Ed couldn't help but give in. Again, Kerria couldn't resist laughing at how well the two brothers got along with each other. Everyone got a good night's sleep, and the next day after Ed left for Central Headquarters, Al and Kerria worked hard to straighten up the extra room. By the time Ed returned home, the storage room had been successfully transformed into Kerria's room. Ed was actually surprised, not only at the hard work they had done, but the fact that the room didn't look quite as…girly as he'd expected. He thought for sure the whole place would be filled with pink, sweet, fluffy, things that most girls would enjoy. Kerria's room was mostly white except for her bedspread and the floor. The bedspread was light blue, and the floor was the same beige carpet that had been there before. There was a window in the back of the room that overlooked the garden, and a desk on the left side of the room. On the right side was a closet, which was empty for now, as Kerria had always borrowed clothes from her foster family's daughter and didn't have any clothes of her own. The wholearea seemed to have a sense of peace about it. 

"Pretty nice." Ed commented, looking around the room. "And you guys did all this in one day?"

"Ha ha…you wouldn't believe all the good stuff we found up here Brother." Al started. "The people who lived here before us left behind a lot. We didn't even have to go out and get much." They all laughed. Kerria was glad that things were finally starting to look up.

* * *

**A/N:** Please review! I'm afraid the story line is moving a bit too fast...and I need an honest opinion. Truthfully, I think I made it that way because I'm trying to get to the good stuff in the story. I'm afraid that this is too boring or something. This is my first fanfic though so I'd appreciate it if you'd please be as gentle as possible. ha ha... 


	3. Chapter 3 Central Headquarters

**A/N: **Sorry this chapter took me so long. School is about ready to start soon and I've been really stressed lately. Not to mention I've had a huge writer's block. ha ha...so the next chapter may not be coming for a while but I'll do my best.

* * *

"Alphonse, please hand me those vegetables…and Edward, if you would go set the table…" Kerria instructed as she stood over the stove and cooked their dinner. The two brothers were rushing around the kitchen doing whatever she asked. It had been about 3 days since Kerria came to live with the Elric brothers, and since then she had been doing whatever she could to help out, including cooking. Finally, the dinner they had been preparing was ready and they all sat down to eat it.

"Hey…not bad." Ed commented, taking a large bite. "What is this? It tastes very interesting." Kerria and Al exchanged nervous looks.

"Eh heh…well…we decided to try something new…" Al started as Ed continued to stuff food into his mouth. "So…we put…fried milk in it." as soon as those last words left Al's mouth, Ed realized what he had just swallowed and grimaced in disgust.

"M-milk? Ugh…I actually ate it?"

"But it was good wasn't it?" Kerria asked smiling. Ed paused for a minute before answering.

"W-well…yeah I guess it's not so bad when it's fried." he said, taking smaller bites. Kerria and Al laughed.

"So Edward, you have to go to the military every day? Don't you get days off?" Kerria questioned.

"Yeah," Ed scowled. "The only days I get off are the few holidays they give us. So until then I have to put up with it."

"Sounds tough," Kerria commented. "and Alphonse tells me you don't like people there either."

"Well, most everyone's okay. There's just a few people I don't exactly enjoy working with."

"Like Mr. Mustang." Al chimed in. Ed glared at his plate and started jabbing his fork at a piece of meat; Kerria wondered if he was pretending it was Mustang's head. Then Ed suddenly got an idea.

"Hey," he started. "since you're so curious why don't you guys come with me tomorrow?" Kerria and Al both thought this was a great idea, and they agreed excitedly.

* * *

Kerria stared up at Central Headquarters in amazement; it was so much bigger than she had expected. She remembered seeing it a few times from a distance while she was shopping or taking a walk, but she had never been this close to it. 

"You going to stare at it or come inside?" Ed called. He and Al were already at the door and were waiting for her.

"Ah! Sorry! I'm coming!" Kerria exclaimed as she ran to catch up with them. When they went inside, the receptionist at the front desk came over to greet them.

"Good morning, Colonel Elric. I see you brought some visitors with you." She smiled, looking over at Kerria and Al who bowed politely. Then she turned back to Ed and added. "Oh, and Fuhrer Mustang wants to see you in his office this morning."

"Oh great." Ed sighed. "Just got here and already I have to put up with him." he sighed again. "Not to mention…" Al and Kerria looked at him questioningly. "in his office…**she's** there."

" 'She'?" Kerria and Al asked, blinking in confusion. Ed assured them that they would see soon enough, and told them to follow him. As the three of them walked down the large hallways on the way to Roy's office, Kerria looked around the place and suddenly began to feel very small. The whole building was so big, she thought it was a miracle Ed never got lost in the labyrinth of hallways and corridors. Al noticed Kerria's amazed expression and laughed slightly.

"It's very big isn't it?" he asked.

"Yes, it's enormous!" she exclaimed. "Have you been here before, Alphonse?"

"A few times."

"Don't you and Edward ever get lost?"

"Ha ha…as long as I follow Brother, I won't get lost. He knows this place pretty well." Al chuckled. Ed turned his head slightly to listen in on their conversation. He was surprised by the fact that Kerria had never seen a big place like this before, but after thinking about her former home life, he realized that maybe it wasn't all that surprising. They finally reached Roy's office, and Ed knocked on the door.

"Come in." A voice said from inside. They all noticed it was not Roy's, but a woman's voice that had spoken. Ed reluctantly opened the door and they all stepped inside. The room was not very big, but not small either. In the back of the room was a large desk, and in front of the desk were a few leather chairs. Many bookshelves, paintings and wall hangings lined the walls, and the floor was covered in forest green carpet. Seated behind the desk was a teenage girl; her shoulder-length, brown hair was tied back in a ponytail that was slightly spiked at the top, and the ends of her hair were highlighted with silver. She looked up from her paperwork when she noticed Ed, Al, and Kerria walk into the room.

"Colonel Edward!" She smiled happily. "You hardly ever come to the office anymore…I miss you helping me out! You never come sharpen my pencils anymore, or file my paperwork for me, or dust the desk…you never even bring me tea much anymore!" she gave him a sulking look.

"I don't come anymore because you always **force **me to help you and give me even **more** work than I already have!" Ed retorted. Al and Kerria were starting to realize why Ed dreaded coming to Roy's office so much. The girl glared at Ed for a minute, then quickly smiled again when she noticed Al and Kerria standing behind him.

"Ah! You brought visitors?" she asked, getting up and walking over to them. Al and Kerria smiled nervously and introduced themselves. "Nice to meet you both." The girl smiled. "I'm Fuhrer Mustang's secretary, Kashi Murasakiiro. Although I think it would be more fun to be Colonel Edward's secretary." Al and Kerria laughed slightly, and Ed rolled his eyes. "So…" Kashi started. " The Colonel has brought his brother and his brother's girlfriend with him today, huh?"

"Wha-Whaaaaaat?" Al and Kerria exclaimed, both of them blushing furiously. Ed couldn't help snickering to himself.

"Ha ha! I'm just kidding." Kashi laughed. "I just wanted to see your reactions." she stuck her tongue out and winked at them smugly. Kerria and Al stared at the floor, still blushing. It was then that something about Kashi caught Ed's attention.

"Kashi…what…what are you wearing?" Ed stammered. Al and Kerria lifted their gaze from the floor and looked in the direction Ed was. Kashi was dressed in her military uniform, but instead of the normal uniform pants, she had on a very tight, blue skirt that came down a few inches above her knees.

"Oh this?" Kashi started, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "Isn't it cute? It just came in today! Fuhrer Mustang had this idea that all female officers should wear miniskirts. Most everyone refused to wear them, but they just looked so cute I couldn't help myself!" Ed, Al and Kerria all stared at her with a mixture of surprise and disgust on their faces. How could there be someone who actually liked that idea?

"Sounds pretty lively in here." A smug voice said from the door. Everyone turned around to see Roy smirking at them.

"Mr. Mustang!" Al exclaimed.

"Good to see you again, Alphonse," Roy said, turning to him. "Edward hasn't been wearing you out too much lately I hope." Al laughed nervously and assured Roy that he was fine.

"Y-You…!" Ed glared at him and started to say something, but he just sighed and asked "So what did you want to see me about?" Al, Kerria, and Kashi quickly left the room so Ed and Roy could speak in private.

"So what do you think of Central Headquarters so far?" Kashi asked Kerria once they were outside the room.

"It actually seems like a fun place," Kerria giggled. "even though it's supposed to be serious."

"Man you're good at observing." Kashi commented. "You've got this place pinned." Al nodded in agreement.

"Brother complains all the time about the work he has to do, but I can tell he likes it here, otherwise he wouldn't still be here." He remarked. "The only reason he joined the military in the first place was to get information from them, but even after our journey was over he decided to stay in the military." he stared at the ground, deep in thought. Kerria wondered what he meant by "journey". She could sense that the Elric brothers had been hiding something from her; even with everything she had told them about her, they never said anything about themselves. She had so many questions to ask, but she didn't want to seem rude, so she decided to wait and see if they told her on their own.

* * *

Inside the office, Roy and Ed were discussing a serious problem that had arisen recently. Roy was seated at his desk and looked at Ed with a serious expression on his face. Ed sat in one of the leather chairs across from him, and was reading a report Roy had handed to him. 

" 'Murders'?" Ed repeated part of what he had just read in the report.

"Yes," Roy replied gravely. "There has been a series of murders happening in and around central. We're still investigating the matter, but…"

"But?"

"But all of the victims so far have been around your age." Roy finished. Ed gasped slightly and scowled at the report in his hands. Why would someone be killing innocent teens? It didn't make sense. "So I suggest you look after yourselves." Roy said firmly. Ed looked up to face him. "You, your brother, and that friend of yours…the girl." Ed looked somberly at the floor again. Roy was right; they had to be very careful or they could be next.

He came outside the office to find Al and Kerria waiting for him. "Brother, is something wrong?" Al asked him. "Your face looks so serious." Ed quickly grinned and gave them a thumbs up sign with his hand.

"Never been better!" He said cheerfully. "I'm finally done listening to that jerk go on and on. Now let's see if we can get through the rest of the day!" Ed motioned for them to follow him, and started to walk down one of the long hallways to the break room; he decided to tell Al and Kerria about the murders once they got there and could talk in private.

* * *

By the time the day was over, it was almost pitch dark outside. Ed, Al, and Kerria were all a bit nervous about walking home in the dark; there was a murderer on the loose, after all. The three of them walked cautiously down the street towards their house, looking all around them for any signs of movement. Almost nobody was around, and there was an eerie sense about the city that wasn't present during the day. 

"I never knew walking home at night could be so scary." Al said with a slight nervous chuckle. He gazed over at Kerria, who looked even more frightened than he was. She had both of her hands clenched into fists, and she held them up to her face. Her usually soft, gray blue eyes were now wide with fear, and shifting in every direction. Al placed his hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, I'm sure we'll be alright." he smiled. Kerria looked up at him and nodded a little.

"We'll be fine." Ed assured them. "Just as long as we keep our eyes peeled." Just then, there came a rustling from a nearby bush, and all three of them jumped. They huddled close together and waited for whatever the thing was to show itself. Suddenly, a shadowy figure leapt from the bush and towards them; they all cried out in terror as they fell to the ground. After a moment, Ed slowly opened one eye; he couldn't see the figure anymore, so he figured that whatever it was must have left. He sat up and glanced behind him, starting to tell Al and Kerria that the coast was clear. "It's okay, it must have been a cat or some--" he suddenly stopped in his tracks as something about them caught his eye. "Wh-what?"

Kerria slowly opened her eyes; she couldn't see anything, as her eyes hadn't re-adjusted to the dark yet, but she could hear Ed nearby so she decided that the coast must be clear. She tried to sit up, but as she did she noticed something was keeping her down.

"E-eh?" Kerria blinked. Her eyes finally started to adjust to the dark and she found that right in front of her own face…was Al's face! They stared at each other in surprise for a moment, and then both began to blush furiously. Apparently, when they fell, Kerria had landed on her back and Al landed forward on top of her. The result, of course, was something that appeared very devious.

"Aaaaah!" they both cried as they quickly separated from each other. Ed couldn't help but laugh out loud. "I…I'm so sorry!" Al apologized, still blushing. "I didn't mean to, really!"

"I-It's okay." Kerria assured him with a slight nervous laugh. They all got to their feet and walked in silence the rest of the way home.

* * *

**A/N:** Ha ha funny ending huh? My rabid fangirl side was kinda showing there for a bit. lol! Well I hope to get started on the next chapter whenever I can. Laters all! 


	4. Chapter 4 The Library

Ed, Al, and Kerria decided that in the future, it would be safer if they traveled either with all of them together, or in a pair; even if it was just for a trip to the market. Something about this murderer seemed odd, and they weren't going to risk their lives to find out what it was. In the meantime, the more Kerria visited Central Headquarters, the more she took a liking for alchemy and the military. She remembered what Al had said about Ed using his military position to get information, and she thought that maybe she could do the same. Maybe she could somehow figure out exactly where she came from. When she told Al about her idea to join the military, he was shocked.

"What? Why would you want to do that?" he asked.

"Well…I know this may sound weird…but I think they might have some information…on my past…"

"Your past?"

"Yes," Kerria looked at the ground. "I think…that where I came from must have something to do with alchemy, otherwise I wouldn't be able to use it, right?"

"Hm…that could be true." Al pondered. "Ed and I had to learn alchemy ourselves from our dad's notes…but you could use it right away?" Kerria nodded.

"A few weeks after I was found on the streets…I found out by accident that I could use alchemy."

"Hm…that **is** strange."

"So," Kerria started, uncertainty in her voice. "Could you…teach me?"

"What?" Al questioned.

"Could you…teach me how to use alchemy better…so I can become a state alchemist? I promise I'll work really hard!"

"But…Brother is much better at alchemy than I am. Why would you ask me?" Al asked. Kerria opened her mouth to say something, but then just stared at the floor silently. Would it be mean to say that she felt more comfortable around Al than she did around Ed? Al smiled and sighed slightly. "Okay…I can try and teach you. But really the best way to learn is through books."

"Eh? They have books on Alchemy?" Kerria was surprised; she enjoyed reading more than almost anything. Why hadn't she thought of that before? Al gave her directions to the Central library, and suggested that she take him and Kashi along to help her pick out some good books. Kerria nodded enthusiastically. "That sounds perfect! Thank you so much!" She grinned, giving Al a big hug. Al blushed and smiled in return.

* * *

"Well…this is it. Central library." Kashi stated as she, Al and Kerria approached the huge building. Again, Kerria was amazed by how large all of the buildings seemed to be in Central. She stared up at the library in awe. "Ha ha…you don't get out much, huh?" Kashi laughed. Kerria gave her a nervous smile. The inside was even more enormous than the outside; the whole place was filled with a maze of bookshelves, and it was at least two stories high. Kerria had no idea where to even start looking! She was suddenly very glad that Al and Kashi had come with her. They were able to lead her straight to the right place, and Kashi immediately began to stack books in a pile for Kerria to check out. "You'll need this one…and this one too…oh this one's perfect…this one is useful too!" she said as she threw more and more books onto the pile. Al and Kerria stared at her in shock; how did she expect them to carry all those books home? By the time she was finished, the pile had reached over fifty books. 

"Um…maybe we should narrow this down to about…ten." Al suggested, and they all started going through the books carefully, hoping that they wouldn't get in trouble for taking almost all the books off the shelves. They all jumped when they heard voices coming from the next aisle over.

"Maybe it's over here." One of the voices said.

"Brother…we've been here for hours…we'll never find it in this huge place." a second, younger voice whined. Kerria, Al, and Kashi quickly scrambled to hide all the books, and failed horribly. It just wasn't possible to make that many books disappear. They all turned just in time to see the owners of the voices turn the corner and stand at the end of the aisle, staring at them. Al gasped, as he recognized them immediately. One was tall, and his sharp, silver eyes stared at them from beneath his blonde hair; his slim build gave him a very mature appearance. The other behind him was much shorter, not to mention younger. He had the same blonde hair and silver eyes as his older brother, but his small size and tendency to look downward gave him an air of uncertainty.

"Fletcher! Russell!" Al exclaimed, relaxing from his tense position. Kerria and Kashi also relaxed, and stared at Al questioningly.

"Al?" Fletcher said from behind his brother.

"Woah…it really is him isn't it?" Russell commented. "He sure has…changed." Al gave a nervous laugh. He had almost forgotten that the last time he saw the Tringham brothers, he was still nothing but a soul incased in a suit of armor.

"I'll explain all of that later." he assured them.

"So, is your brother still a tiny pipsqueak?" Russell smirked. Fletcher tugged on his brother's shirt and told him not to make such mean comments.

"Actually, we're about the same height now." Al said with a nervous smile.

"Alphonse? You know them?" Kerria asked. Al hurriedly apologized and introduced the Tringham brothers to Kerria and Kashi. He also explained that Kerria was learning alchemy.

"Ah…an alchemist in training, huh?" Russell asked, turning to Kerria.

"Yes," Kerria replied. "Al is teaching me…and we were going to check out some books but," she pointed to the huge stack behind her. "Thanks to **someone**, we kind of got a little too much." she said, then looked over at Kashi.

"Hey! It's not my fault!" Kashi protested. "They just all looked good and I got carried away!"

"That still makes it your fault." Kerria pointed out. Russell laughed and offered to help them sort though all the books, to which they thankfully agreed.

* * *

By the time they finally finished sorting, it was almost dinner time. 

"Well gang, it's been fun but I have to get going." Kashi stated.

"Eh? Already?" Kerria asked sadly.

"Yeah…Fuhrer Mustang gave me a whole bunch of paperwork to do. But I'll see you guys tomorrow!" she waved goodbye and ran off. To thank Russell and Fletcher for helping out, Kerria invited them to come back home with her and Al for dinner. They all thought it was a good idea and started to head towards the house.

"Geez…these books are so heavy." Kerria mumbled to herself as they walked. Even though they had managed to reduce the pile to only 10 books, it was still too much for her to carry by herself. Al noticed Kerria struggling with the stack of books in her arms and quickly offered to help carry some.

"Ah…but...I can…" Kerria started to protest, but when she saw the look of concern on Al's face, she couldn't help but give in. "O-okay." she said, handing him a few books from the stack. Al smiled and they continued to walk.

When they reached the house, a very worried (and hungry) Ed came to greet them.

"Where have you guys been?" He asked. "I didn't think it would take you that long to…" he stopped as he noticed Russell and Fletcher were also there. "Hey…it's you guys. Long time no see!"

"Yeah! It's good to see you guys again!" Fletcher grinned.

"Heh…I guess you really did grow some." Russell smirked. "You actually got to be about the same size as I am. Imagine that."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ed growled.

"Ah…um…I'll go make dinner." Kerria laughed nervously. Al nodded and followed her into the kitchen to help

During dinner, the subject of Kerria's alchemy training somehow came up in conversation. To Kerria's delight, everyone seemed to think it was a good idea. Russell, Fletcher, and even Ed agreed to help Al in teaching her. Kerria thanked them for the offer and decided to start studying the books they got from the library right after dinner; she was too excited to wait until the next day. As soon as dinner was over and Russell and Fletcher had left, Kerria immediately took the books up to her room and began studying. To her surprise, she was actually able to understand what she was reading. She had always known how to perform alchemy; she taught herself using the few things she had learned while watching other alchemists. Now, all of that was starting to make sense. She excitedly read more and more until she had completely lost track of time.

Al looked up from the dishes he was washing and looked over at Ed, who was reluctantly drying the dishes that had already been washed. "Brother, it's really late. Do you think she's still up there working?" he asked in a slightly worried tone.

"Probably." Ed answered. "She was so excited, I bet she'll be up all night." Al smiled to himself, remembering how excited he and Ed were when they first learned alchemy. When the dishes were finished, Al went upstairs and crept towards Kerria's room to check on her. He knocked softly on her closed door, and when there was no answer, he slowly pushed the door open a crack and peeked inside. Kerria was still seated at her desk, but she had fallen asleep there with her head resting on the desk in the middle of studying. Al stifled a giggle and walked over to her. He glanced at the table, which was covered with the books from the library, notes Kerria had written, and a few pieces of scrap paper on which she had been practicing drawing transmutation circles. Al quietly sifted through some of the notes, and was very impressed with them. Kerria had somehow managed to learn in a few hours what he and Ed learned in a week. Of course, Ed and Al were very young when they first learned alchemy, but Al was still amazed. He began to wonder just where Kerria had come from. Kerria stirred slightly in her sleep and mumbled something about equivalent exchange, causing Al to suppress another laugh. He walked over to her bed and pulled off the top blanket, then lightly covered Kerria with it and left the room, closing the door behind him. As he walked back down the stairs, he vowed to himself that he would do anything he could to find out Kerria's true identity.

* * *

In another, unknown part of town, a few indistinct figures gathered to discuss the matters at hand. Each one of them wore a cloak, so it was impossible to tell exactly who…or what they were. 

"So…it has been confirmed then? She is here?" One of the figures whispered.

"Yes, and she is learning…alchemy." Another replied with a slight grin.

"Alchemy? How interesting." another commented.

"Yes. That should help us out quite a bit, shouldn't it?"

"It will. Keep an eye on her, and report back to me." The first figure, who was apparently the leader, commanded. The others bowed in obedience and left silently. "Soon…our plan will take place soon." The leader of the group grinned to himself.

* * *

**A/N:** Phew! I somehow managed to write another chapter. The plot is starting to thicken a bit. I'm having a bit of trouble coming up with ways to put my ideas on paper at the moment...I also have a lot of school stuff going on too. So I'm sorry if there's a lot of time between chapters but I'll try my best! 


	5. Chapter 5 Danger is Near?

Kerria continued studying alchemy, and the more she practiced it, the more she liked it. Sometimes, Ed and Al would help her practice and give her tips on how to improve. Kashi and the Tringham brothers also stopped by every once in a while to chat and to check on Kerria's progress. Kerria felt lucky to have so many good friends cheering her on, and each time they praised her, it urged her to work even harder.

Kerria began to get better and better, as expected. However, one particular day, while Al and Kerria were preparing lunch, something happened that nobody could possibly have seen coming. Al was chopping up some carrots to put into the stew Kerria was making; his mind suddenly wandered for a few seconds, causing his hand to slip and the knife to cut into his hand. He cried out a little in surprise and pain; Kerria turned to ask him what was wrong.

"Oh, it's nothing." he answered, holding up his hand to show her the cut. "I just cut myself a bit is all." His voice was calm, but the cut was very deep and blood had begun to stream from the wound and down his hand.

"Ah! You're bleeding!" Kerria pointed out. Al looked down at his hand and gasped at the blood that hadn't been there a moment ago.

"Y-Yeah. Maybe I should bandage it up real quick." he said, turning to go get the first aid kit.

"Actually…" Kerria started, uncertainty in her voice. Al stopped and looked at her questioningly. "Can I…try something?"

"Try something?"

"Yes. I was reading earlier, and I found something in one of my books about healing alchemy. I've been waiting for a chance to try it, so…"

"Hm…healing alchemy? I didn't think that was possible." Al pondered. "But if it was in a book…okay then, give it a shot." He held out his bloody hand towards her. Kerria smiled a little and took a piece of chalk from her pocket. She quickly drew the healing transmutation circle she'd memorized from the book onto the palm of her hand, then placed it gently on top of Al's injury. A cool, blue light surrounded Al's hand, and the cut immediately began to heal. But then, the unexpected happened. Kerria studied Al's hand for a few moments, and then suddenly everything around her started to fade away and numerous thoughts and images began to surround her. Kerria felt as if she was watching a movie, and stood staring at the pictures before her. She saw 3 young kids: two boys and a blonde-haired girl, and she watched as they laughed and played together in the grassy plains of their hometown. Then she saw a house, with a warm air about it and the welcoming, smiling face of a woman who always seemed to be around. Suddenly, the visions became more vague and harder to see, but still brimming with emotion. Kerria saw disaster, death, pain and suffering, and then everything became clear again and the bold image of a large suit of armor came into view. Kerria could somehow tell that the armor wasn't what it seemed; in a way, it was almost…human. She focused on the image and knew immediately that it would be burned into her mind forever.

"Kerria? Kerria!" Al's voice cut through the image and Kerria blinked a few times as she snapped back to reality.

"Wh-what…was that?" she stammered. She looked down and realized that her hand was still resting on Al's, and that his cut had completely healed.

"You did it, Kerria." Al told her, gently squeezing her hand. "But…then you zoned out for a minute. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." Kerria nodded. "It was the weirdest thing. All of these pictures just started running through my head all at once. I think…they were memories."

* * *

"Memories?" Ed asked. They had all just sat down to dinner, and Kerria was explaining what had happened earlier that day while Ed was still up at Central Headquarters.

"Yes," Kerria replied. "But I don't think they were mine."

"How do you figure that?" Ed continued to question her. "I mean you did lose your memories right?"

"Yes, I did. But what I saw…it wasn't from my point of view. It was more like I was watching everything that had happened to someone else."

"What did you see?" Al asked. Kerria began to list in great detail everything she had seen, and the more she talked, the more serious the Elric brothers' expressions became. After Kerria finished, she noticed their appearances and looked at them questioningly.

"Kids playing…a warm house…" Ed muttered.

"Tragedy…sadness…a suit of armor." Al continued his brother's thoughts.

"Yep, it all sounds too familiar to be a coincidence." Ed said seriously, turning to Kerria. "Kerria…what you saw…those must have been Al's memories." Kerria gasped and looked at the brothers in shock. Suddenly, all she could think about was just how horrible those memories were, and the fact that they were Al's memories made her feel even worse. She glanced over at Al; he was avoiding her eyes and staring down at his plate instead. Kerria blinked back tears as she stared at his painful expression. Ed sighed and cleared his throat before turning to Al.

"Al…I think it's about time we tell Kerria," he said slowly. "about our past. I think she deserves to know." Al nodded, and then looked up to meet Kerria's gaze. It was then that the brothers realized a few tears silently streaming down her face.

"I'm…sorry." she sobbed. "I didn't mean to pry or anything. I feel like I saw something I shouldn't have."

"No, really, it's okay." Al shook his head. "It's not your fault that you saw all of that, and you really do deserve to know." Kerria wiped away her tears and smiled a little at the two of them, silently indicating that she was ready to hear what they had to say.

The two brothers smiled understandingly, and then they began to tell Kerria exactly what happened in their past. They told her about their childhood years in Rizembool, and how their mother had died from sickness when they were still young. They told her about how they had sought out a teacher and learned how to improve their alchemy in order to bring their mother back. Then they told her about that fateful night when their human transmutation failed, and Ed ended up losing his leg and arm, while Al became nothing but a soul incased in a suit of armor. They also explained all they had gone through to find the philosopher's stone and return things to normal. Kerria could tell that it was hard for them to tell her all of this, but at the same time, she was glad that they trusted her enough to tell her.

After dinner was over and the explanations were finally done, Kerria went into the kitchen to wash the dishes. As she washed, her mind swarmed with everything Ed and Al had told her. She still just couldn't believe the pain they had been through; especially Al. Kerria thought of what it must have been like, being only a soul trapped in a suit of armor; she knew it must have been so hard for him. Suddenly, she felt a hand on her shoulder and turned to see Ed behind her.

"I'm sorry for telling you so much at one time like that." he said solemnly. "I just thought you should know."

"I know," Kerria assured him. "and it's okay. It's just hard to imagine…everything you two must have gone through."

"You should go talk to Al." Ed suggested. He could, in some way, sense that Kerria knew Al had endured more than he had, and that Al was the one she felt sorry for the most. "He's up in his room reading, I think. But I know he'd probably like it if you went and talked to him." Kerria nodded and smiled a bit. She started to walk away towards the stairs, but then turned around.

"Hey, Edward? I wanted to ask you something." she started. Ed looked at her curiously and she took that as an indication for her to go on. "If this bothers you, you don't have to answer. But, why is it that Al is whole again and you still have an automail arm and leg?"

Ed chuckled grimly and held his automail right arm out in front of him, staring down thoughtfully at his reflection in the gleaming steel. "Well it's a long story, but in the end this was the price I ended up paying for getting Al's real body back. I don't really mind it, though. Automail isn't so hard to deal with compared to having no body at all. Truthfully, I'm just glad he's finally happy." Kerria smiled at Ed, touched by his words. The Elric brothers never ceased to amaze her with their brotherly love for each other. It sometimes made her wonder if she ever had a brother or sister, and if she ever cared for anyone like that. Kerria thanked Ed and told him goodnight, then she turned and headed up the stairs.

When she finally reached the door to Al's room, she took a deep breath and then knocked on the door. She heard Al's voice from inside tell her to come in, and so she opened the door and stepped inside.

"Oh hi, Kerria." Al said cheerfully, looking up from the book he was reading. "What's up?"

"Um…well I just…" Kerria started, not sure what to say. "I just wanted to check on how you're doing." Al laughed slightly and gave her a smile.

"I'm fine," he assured her. "But more importantly, you were actually able to perform healing alchemy earlier, weren't you?"

"Oh, yeah." Kerria said in astonishment. "I was so worried about you, that I almost forgot."

"Worried about me?" Al asked, surprised by what she said; his face immediately began to turn red as she nodded, a concerned expression on her face. "Ah…well…thank you. I mean…you didn't really have to worry." Al stammered. "Not that…I'm not happy you're worried about me! No, wait…I mean…I didn't mean to make you worry…" Kerria giggled to herself, thinking how cute he looked when he was flustered. Al quickly cleared his throat in an attempt to regain his composure before continuing. "But anyways, I'm really impressed that you could do alchemy like that. I've never tried it before, that's for sure."

"Hm? Why is that?" Kerria questioned.

"Well…I just always thought it couldn't be done because…" Al stopped in mid-sentence as he went into deep thought. He had always thought that healing would be considered human transmutation, which was of course the worst thing any alchemist could try to perform. He and Ed learned that lesson long ago and they knew it well. So then why was Kerria able to do it? And why did she see his memories? Could that have been the price that was required to achieve the transmutation, or something else? So many questions kept appearing, but none of them were being answered.

Kerria looked at Al questioningly, noticing that he seemed to be off in his own world. She wished to learn more about her past as soon as possible, and so she decided it was time to start training hard…for the state alchemist's certification exam.

* * *

"Wow…so you're really going to try and become a state alchemist?" Kashi asked excitedly. Kerria and Al decided to follow Ed to Central Headquarters again in order to talk to Kashi and Roy about the idea of Kerria joining the military. Kerria asked Kashi for her opinion, to which Kashi replied that she thought it was a great idea. Roy on the other hand, wasn't liking the idea of a young girl like her joining the military. Kerria insisted that she could handle being in the military, if that meant she could possibly find out where she came from and regain her memories. After hearing how determined she was, Roy chuckled to himself and made a comment; something about having too many children in the military. Then, he finally agreed to let her take the State Alchemist exam. Kerria beamed with pride and promised him that she would do her best. As they all turned to leave the room, Roy motioned for Ed to stay behind. He nodded and sat down in one of the chairs in front of the desk as the others walked out the door and closed it behind them.

"Do you really think it's a good idea…encouraging a 16 year old girl to join the military?" Roy questioned.

Ed shrugged. "Not sure, to be honest. But I think she can handle it." Roy nodded in agreement, but he still looked slightly uncertain. There was a short pause, and then Ed continued, "But I don't think you would want to talk to me in private just for that…so what else is going on?"

Roy smirked slightly. "You know me too well Fullmetal…it's almost annoying." After Ed shot him a glare he continued, "The murders in the area have stopped for the moment. But everyone's still uneasy. Something about it just doesn't seem right."

"What do you mean?"

"It doesn't seem odd to you that a serial killer would just stop killing all of a sudden?"

"Hm…true. But what could it mean?"

"I don't know…but hopefully we can find out. Keep on your guard, Fullmetal."

Ed nodded and stood to leave the room.

* * *

When they got back home, Kerria went up to her room to study more, excited and a bit nervous about the exam. She decided to try and find the book about healing alchemy she had been reading before; she thought it was strange that Ed and Al had never tried it, and she figured the book might say why. However, no matter how hard she looked, she couldn't find it anywhere. She went downstairs and asked Ed and Al if they had seen it, but they both replied that they hadn't.

"That's so strange. I know it was right there in my room." Kerria pondered to herself. "So where could it have gone?

* * *

A cloaked figure hurried through the streets of central late at night, walking swiftly and quietly to make sure he wouldn't be seen or heard. His cape trailed behind him as he quickly darted into a dark alley. There, he met up with his companions, who were all equally cloaked and partially hidden by the shadows.

"Well?" the leader of the group hissed.

"Sir. The plan was successful." the newly arrived figure announced. "The book was effectively delivered and removed." he bowed slightly and outstretched his arms, revealing a book he held in his hands titled, "Healing and Medicinal Alchemy".

The leader nodded in satisfaction. "And the girl?"

"She was able to perform it, sir. Just as we suspected. However, she is also preparing to become a state alchemist."

At this, the leader grinned. "A state alchemist, huh?"

"Should we try to stop her, sir?"

"No. This makes things all the more interesting. Burn the book and continue to keep an eye on the girl."

The gathered figures bowed and went off once again to obey his orders.

* * *

The next day, Kerria and Kashi went into town to have lunch together. The two had grown to be good friends and were excited about getting the chance to work together in the military.

"Uh…Kashi?" Kerria stammered as she watched her friend gobble down half an ice cream sundae in about a minute.

"What?" Kashi looked up from eating. "I haven't been able to eat great stuff like this in forever. Fuhrer Mustang gives me so much paperwork that I have to skip a lot of meals."

"W-wow, really? I never knew you had it so hard."

"Heh…yeah. So are you going to wear a miniskirt with your uniform like mine?" Kashi asked, a big grin on her face.

"I…I'm not even a state alchemist yet." Kerria said with uncertainty in her voice. "I don't even know if I can pass that exam."

"Don't even say that!" Kashi shouted, waving her spoon at Kerria. "I know you'll do great, from what Ed and Al have told me. I'm really excited to see what you've learned. They've been teaching you right?"

"Yeah," Kerria nodded. "They've both been a big help. If it wasn't for them, I would have never even learned alchemy.

"Yeah, you'll do fine," Kashi assured her. "and I have just the thing for you to wear!" she winked at Kerria smugly. The two girls laughed and continued to talk and joke to one another, enjoying the afternoon. They were so busy chatting and having fun that they didn't even notice the dark figure staring at them from the shadows of a nearby alley. He grinned to himself as his gaze locked on Kashi. At last, he had found a new plan.

* * *

**A/N:** phew I managed to write another chapter. I'm actually pretty proud of myself...the story seems to be coming along well. My only fear at this point is that I may be making Ed just a bit OOC. But other than that, I like how it's going. Also, thanks to everyone who's reviewed! It's really encouraging me to do my best and work hard to write new chapters even with school and everything else going on! Thank you, guys and look forward to the next chapter!


	6. Chapter 6 State Alchemist's Exam

Kerria opened her eyes, then sat up in bed and stretched. She felt refreshed and energized, which was a good thing seeing as she would need to be awake and alert for her state alchemist exam later that day. She was a little nervous, but deep down she had a feeling it would all work out. As she got out of bed and began to get dressed, she could hear the clinking of bowls and silverware downstairs, which indicated that Ed and Al were already awake and preparing breakfast.

"Good morning!" Kerria greeted them as she came into the kitchen. "Anything I can help with?"

"Morning, Kerria." Al said with a smile. "Actually, would you mind getting the drinks?"

Kerria nodded energetically and began to pour orange juice for the three of them.

* * *

After breakfast, Kerria, Ed and Al all sat in the living room doing some last minute studying just to make sure Kerria was ready for her exam. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

"I'll get it!" Kerria exclaimed, jumping up from her seat. Al's eyes followed her out of the room, and once she was gone, he glanced over at a package on the floor near his chair. Ed laughed a little to himself and slowly shook his head.

"Why don't you just give it to her, Al? You don't have much time, you know."

"W-Well, I…I just need…the right moment." Al stammered, his face turning red.

"Heh…I guess that makes sense." Ed said, leaning back in his chair.

Just then, Kerria walked back into the room and informed Ed and Al that it was the Tringham brothers who were at the door.

"I asked if they wanted to come in, but they were in a hurry." She explained. "They said they just came by to wish me good luck on my exam." She sat back down and looked over at the two brothers. "Speaking of which, we should leave soon, shouldn't we?"

Ed nodded and stood up from his chair. "Yeah…I just have a few more things to do upstairs and then we can go." He turned to go upstairs and on his way, shot Al a look that said "Now's your chance! Make it good!" Al nodded, and as soon as Ed disappeared upstairs, he turned to Kerria and cleared his throat. Kerria smiled at him questioningly, knowing he had something to say.

"Um, I…" Al started. "While I have the chance…here," He picked up the package and handed it to Kerria. "This is for you." Kerria shot him a thankful glance and took the package from him. She carefully opened the present; inside, was a pair of gloves. They were white, and cut so that they would not completely cover her fingers, just the knuckles. On the palm of each glove was a transmutation circle, which Kerria recognized from one of the books she had studied.

"These are…" Kerria gasped.

"They're to help you when you become a state alchemist." Al said, his face flushed. "All you have to do is clap your hands together, and you can do alchemy without drawing a transmutation circle every time."

Kerria reached over and gave him a big hug. "These are wonderful, Alphonse! Thank you so much!" Al's face turned so red, he thought he would explode.

* * *

Kerria, Ed and Al went to Central HQ as planned, but upon their arrival they noticed that something just wasn't right. When they walked in, the usually busy lobby was completely empty; even Kashi and the friendly receptionist who were usually there to greet them were nowhere to be found. Thinking this strange, the three teens continued on into the building, only to find that all of the hallways were just as empty as the lobby.

"Where is everybody?" Ed said warily. "I don't like this…it makes me feel uneasy."

Al nodded. "Something's definitely up." Just then, a soldier came running up to them and threw his hand up into a salute directed towards Ed; it was then that they realized he must have been of a lower rank.

"Colonel Elric, sir! We're glad you're here." He stated. "The Fuhrer has called an emergency meeting." Ed blinked a few times; apparently he still wasn't used to his new, higher rank as Colonel. He nodded to the soldier and directed Al and Kerria to the conference room, then went inside while Kerria and Al listened in at the door.

"Ah…Fullmetal. Good, now we can start the meeting." Roy said from the front of the room as he saw Ed walk in; Ed took a seat near the back. The conference room was slightly large, and had a bulletin board up near where Roy stood. The rest of the room was filled with seats and about twenty to thirty soldiers. Among these soldiers, Ed recognized a few familiar faces.

Roy cleared his throat and then began, "As you may have heard, a soldier stationed here at Central was abducted from their house last night. We received a note this morning, telling us the exact whereabouts of the hostage and daring us to come after them. The hostage…is State Alchemist and Secretary…Kashi Murasakiiro." As he finished his sentence, a low murmur erupted from the crowd; Ed gasped and Kerria and Al exchanged worried looks. Roy called the crowd to silence and continued. "We already have a plan on how to handle the situation. So for now I'm going to ask everyone to stay calm and go about your work as usual. I assure you that you are not in danger and that this will all end shortly." He stared sternly at the crowd for a moment, then announced their dismissal. As everyone stood to leave the room, Ed walked up to Roy and practically demanded a better explanation.

"Is Kerria here with you?" Roy asked in a low voice.

"Yeah, so is Al. We came for Kerria's exam today, remember?" Ed answered. "So what's your point?"

Roy sighed. "I don't know who or what we're up against here, Fullmetal. But whoever they are, they have something up their sleeves…something **big**."

"But what do they want with Kashi? And how is Kerria involved?"

"Actually, Kashi seems to have gotten involved because of Kerria." Ed stared in disbelief at Roy, who then pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket and handed it to Ed. "Here, it's the note they sent us." Ed scanned the paper; as Roy had said in the meeting before, it gave a complete description of where Kashi was being kept, along with a small statement at the bottom.

"They're keeping her at that old warehouse on the edge of town." Ed muttered to himself, not once looking up from reading.

The very last part of the note read: "Don't go sending your best state alchemists out here for this kind of job. Word on the street is, Central HQ has a new alchemist in training: a 16 year old girl. Why not put her to the test?"

"Hm…yeah, it looks like they've been following Kerria around for some time." Ed concluded, folding up the paper and handing it back to Roy. "Why else would they have kidnapped Kashi? They must have known about her and Kerria being friends."

"And her state alchemist training." Roy added.

"Yeah. But things still just don't add up." Ed put a hand to his chin in thought. "Why would these people want to 'test' Kerria? What is it they want?"

"I don't know," Roy sighed. "But like I said before, they've got to have some sort of big plan. Otherwise, they wouldn't go to all this trouble."

"So what are you going to do?"

"Well, I figure that until we know more about what these people are after, we should give them what they want. Besides, Kerria's been waiting for a chance to try out what she's learned, hasn't she?" Roy said with a smile.

"I see, " Ed smirked, catching on to what the Fuhrer was suggesting. "What better way to take a state alchemist exam then to be involved in an actual battle."

"Exactly. Of course, you and your brother can accompany her. And backup will be assembled outside just in case."

"Sounds like a plan to me."

Ed left the conference room and found Kerria and Al outside the door waiting for him. The determined looks on their faces told him that they must at least have an idea of what was going on.

"I'm going to accept their challenge." Kerria stated, her misty eyes sparkling with confidence. "I'm going to pass this test."

* * *

Kerria, Ed, and Al stood in front of the old warehouse, staring up at it defiantly. Kashi was in there somewhere, and probably a lot of traps were set for them too. Ed turned to Roy and his backup assembly, which consisted of Lieutenant Hawkeye, Second Lieutenant Havoc, Second Lieutenant Breda, Sergeant Fuery, and Officer Falman; this group had become currently known as "Mustang's Crew".

"We're going in." Ed stated, and Roy nodded in response. Kerria looked down at her gloved hands; the gloves Al had given her fit perfectly, and she had every intention to put them to good use. It was obvious that the kidnappers were trying to get to her through Kashi, and she wasn't about to let them.

Quickly but cautiously, Kerria, Ed and Al entered the warehouse. "This building is so old that it could collapse at any second." Ed whispered.

Al nodded. "Yeah, so we should be careful right?"

"Not only that, but it means Kashi must be in a room that has a lot of pipes to hold it up. They must have put her somewhere safe if they didn't want her dead."

"Somewhere like…the basement?" Kerria suggested.

"Bingo."

The trek to the basement was tougher than they thought it would be. Crumbling walls and ceilings threatened to crush them at any moment, and Ed had to use alchemy several times to fix any worn out floors that might have been dangerous to walk on. As they neared the basement, they could hear the sound of dripping water, telling them their guess had been correct. Sure enough, when they stepped inside the damp, murky room, they could see metal pipes protruding from the walls and intertwining with each other throughout the basement. Then, way back in a corner of the room, they spotted the familiar figure that they had all hoped to see.

"Kashi!" Ed exclaimed, jumping over rubble and pipes to reach her. She sat slumped over in the corner, her hands and feet bound by thick wire; she appeared to be unconscious. "Kashi! Hey Kashi, you okay?" Ed shook her shoulders, trying to rouse her. Al and Kerria stood behind him, hopefully waiting for Kashi to wake up. Finally, Kashi moaned and looked up at her three friends.

"What? Where am I?" Kashi mumbled. "I…"

"You what? Are you hurt?" Kerria asked, seeing the grimace on her friends face.

"I…I…I'm so **hungry**." Kashi whined as her stomach gave a loud growl. Ed, Al, and Kerria all sighed in exasperation.

"Leave it to her to be hungry at a time like this." Al laughed.

"Yeah, but that's the least of our worries right now." Ed pointed out. "We need to get out of here." Just as he reached over to untie Kashi, a loud "BANG!" echoed throughout the basement and a bullet shot towards Ed, who just managed to dodge it. Before anyone could say something, more bullets began to rain down on them from above. Kashi screamed out to her friends as they tried to evade the deadly shower around them. Kerria quickly hid behind a large pipe and tried to find out just where the bullets were coming from.

Meanwhile, outside the warehouse, Roy heard the gunfire and turned to Lieutenant Hawkeye behind him. "Let's go." he ordered. "That's our cue." Hawkeye nodded and motioned to the others that it was time to move out.

Back in the basement, Kerria had finally spotted a few shadowy figures carrying guns up near the ceiling. "They're hiding up in the pipes!" she exclaimed, clenching her hands into fists. Suddenly, an idea came to her and she smiled confidently to herself. "Now's my chance to show them what I can do!"

"Kerria!" Al called out to her over the roar of gunfire. She looked up and saw him and Ed hiding behind a pillar on the other side of the room. "You okay over there?"

"Yeah, I'm fine!" She answered. "Now let's get rid of these jerks!" With that, she took a deep breath and started to make a run for the large tangle of pipes in the center of the room. Everything seemed to go into slow notion as she ran, dodging bullets along the way. She could hear her friends calling out to her and the entry of Roy and the backup squad. She heard the squad join in the gunfire and Roy's exclamation of "What is she doing?"

Finally, Kerria reached the large, metal cylinders and time snapped back to normal; she clapped her hands together and then slammed them against the bulky pipes. There was a short moment of silence, and then a low roar began to erupt from within the walls. The gunfire immediately stopped and all eyes turned towards Kerria. As the rumbling began to get louder, the pipes started to glow with a blue light. The noise got louder, and the light brighter until suddenly the pipes exploded, unleashing a roaring, giant hurricane that reached all the way from the floor to the ceiling. Everyone stared in awe at the massive whirlpool swirling ferociously in the center of the room. Most of the enemies were at once washed away by the rushing water, but a few, although taken slightly aback, still remained.

"Wonderful," the leader grinned, wiping the water from his face and trying to catch his balance after being thrown. "Just as we expected. Let's see what else she can come up with. Those who are left, reload and fire at will!" They all began to reload their guns, and then once again opened fire on everyone below.

Kerria screamed, trying to hide behind the pipes while keeping the water around her in motion and under control. At that moment, Ed and Al, who had just untied Kashi, turned around in surprise.

"Dammit!" Ed cursed. "There's still some of those bastards left!" Kashi jumped up from the ground and ran towards Kerria.

"Hang on, I'm coming!" she called.

"Shouldn't we help, Brother?" Al asked.

"Nah, I think they can handle it." Ed assured him. "You'll see."

Once Kashi reached the giant whirlpool, she announced to Kerria that she was here to help.

"Kashi!" Kerria exclaimed.

"Just keep the water going!" Kashi yelled back.

"Okay!"

Hawkeye made a move to go help them, but Roy stopped her. "Just wait," he said. "I want to see what they do. That girl sure has skills, I can tell you that."

Kashi quickly drew transmutation circles on her hands, then smugly clapped them together and plunged them into the water. The liquid at her fingertips immediately hardened into millions of sparkling, dagger-like diamonds, which were then hurled up at the enemies above by the swirling water. The unsuspecting villains were being shot down one by one by the daggers, but still the leader refused to give up. Just then, the whole building started to tremble and collapse; the pressure from the water had been too much for it.

"Damn!" The enemy leader cursed, and they all fled the scene for fear of being crushed. "We underestimated those two. But we will be back. That girl has a power we just can't do without."

"Let's get out of here!" Hawkeye called to Ed, Al, Kerria, and Kashi. "The enemies have retreated and we better go too!" They all nodded and Kerria let the swirling waters die as the four of them followed everyone else out of the fast-crumbling building. Kerria was one of the last ones out of the basement, and she ran as fast as she could to catch up with the others. Suddenly, a large piece of rubble fell from the ceiling and onto her leg, causing her to scream and fall to the floor. She looked down at her leg and, to her terror, noticed her foot was stuck.

"I…can't move!" she exclaimed in alarm. "H-Help me!"

Her friends heard her cry for help and stopped running to look behind them.

"Oh no, Kerria!" Kashi cried. "What should we do?"

"You go on ahead!" Al told them as he made a run for Kerria. The others nodded and continued to escape from the building. "Kerria! I'm coming!" Al shouted as he ran up to her.

"I can't move!" she said through tears as more and more of the building fell around them.

"Hold on!" Al told her. He lifted the rocks off of her leg and then quickly helped her to stand. "Can you run?"

"I…I don't think so."

"Okay, then. Let's get out of here." Al said as he picked her up in his arms and ran as fast as he could out of the warehouse, dodging falling rubble along the way. Kerria's leg was throbbing with pain, but she still knew somehow that they would make it out of the building safely.

* * *

A/N: Whoo! Chapter 6! Finally the fun stuff is starting! Everyone look forward to the next chapter!


	7. Chapter 7 Rainy Day

**A/N:** Well everyone,after going through school exams, a death in the family, holiday responsibilities, being sick, and a major writer's block, I was finally able to finish chapter 7! Sorry it took so long. I promise I'm trying my hardest with this story. I've already started on chapter 8 so hopefully that one will move faster. Enjoy!

* * *

"Where am I?" Kerria said to herself. The last thing she remembered was the warehouse collapsing . Now, she could see nothing but blank, open space. "What is this place?" she murmured, looking around. Suddenly, she saw a shadow start to creep over her and she realized that something was behind her. Quickly, she whirled around and stared up at what seemed to be a large door. Kerria was fascinated by it and wondered to herself why a door was in the middle of nowhere. Involuntarily, she reached out and ran her fingers along the polished and deep-cut designs in the wood; Kerria noticed it was a strange design. Then, a thought suddenly hit her: a memory. It flashed through her mind for only an instant, but Kerria knew exactly what she had seen. "I…I've been here before." she breathed. "I've seen this door once before." Then, just as suddenly as it had appeared, the door vanished.

"Kerria? You awake?"

Kerria's eyes flew open, and she saw Kashi standing over her.

"Hey, welcome back!" Kashi smiled. "You had us all worried."

"What? She's awake?" Came Al's voice from behind Kashi. Kerria sat up slowly and looked around. The clean, white appearance of the room indicated that she was in some sort of hospital.

"Where am I?" She asked her friends. "The last thing I remember is…the warehouse collapsing…and then I fell…"

"Yeah, Al had to carry you out because you hurt your ankle." Kashi explained. "Then you really had us worried when you just passed out all of a sudden. We figured you were in pain, so Fuhrer Mustang decided to bring you here to the clinic and get your injury taken care of."

"Ah…" Kerria gave her an understanding nod and then glanced over at Al. "Thank you…for helping me out of there." she smiled.

"Y-Yeah…no problem."

* * *

In the meantime, Ed and Roy sat in Roy's office and discussed the warehouse event.

"So who do you think those people were?" Ed inquired. "Terrorists maybe?"

"Hm…maybe. But why would they be after Kerria. It still just doesn't make any sense." Roy pondered. "I'm afraid this one has me stumped, Fullmetal."

"I think it has all of us stumped. There's one thing that I thought of, though. Is there any way these people could be connected to the murders that were happening a while ago." Roy considered this thought for a moment; he had almost completely forgotten about the serial killer case he had been working on.

"You just may have a point, there. I'll look into it. But in the meantime," he took an envelope out of one of his desk drawers and handed it to Ed. "Deliver this to Kerria for me." Ed smirked slightly as he took the envelope, already knowing what it contained.

* * *

Ed walked down to the clinic where the others were and went inside. A smile crossed his face when he noticed Kerria sitting up in her bed. "Good, you're up." he said cheerfully, handing her the envelope he had in his hands. "Mustang just told me to give this to you, and judging by the look on his face, I'd say it's something good." Kerria thanked him and then began to carefully open the envelope. She took out the document inside and began to read it aloud to her friends, a big grin on her face.

"By the power vested in me as Fuhrer President, I, Roy Mustang. Hereby bestow upon Kerria Vagans the title of…The Storm Alchemist."

"Wow! 'The Storm Alchemist'! That has a nice ring to it!" Kashi exclaimed; Ed and Al nodded in agreement. It was a given that the name had come from the hurricane Kerria conjured in the warehouse basement. Kerria noticed something heavy was still in the envelope and she reached in to get it. Her fingers touched something hard and cold; she pulled the object out and immediately realized what it was: the silver pocket watch of a state alchemist. Kerria was so happy that tears almost came to her eyes. Finally, she had become a true state alchemist.

* * *

Kerria was ordered by Roy to stay off of her feet as much as possible until her ankle healed, so he arranged for her, Ed, and Al to get a ride home. Normally, they would walk home, but it was decided that the three of them, especially Kerria, would be kept under close watch and protection in case the terrorists were to show up again. Not only that, but it was impossible for them to walk when Kerria could hardly even stand.

"Thanks for the ride" Ed said to Lieutenant Havoc as the car pulled up to their house. Havoc gave him a nod and a "Take care." before driving off again.

"Well, we're finally home." Ed sighed.

"Yep…quite an adventure, huh?" Kerria laughed slightly as she started to limp her way up to the front door.

"Ah! Wait!" Al exclaimed, grabbing onto Kerria's shoulder. "Y-You shouldn't walk." Kerria started to assure him that she was fine, but before she could get the words out, she was suddenly scooped up into Al's arms and being carried up the walk to the house. To Ed's amusement, both she and Al blushed furiously as he carried her into the house and up to her room. Al made sure that Kerria was comfortable in her bed, then left the room, telling her to call him if she needed anything. Kerria nodded almost absentmindedly and sank underneath her covers. Meanwhile, no sooner had Al closed Kerria's door behind him then he was face-to-face with his brother and being teased non-stop.

"What? No kiss goodnight?" Ed smirked. "You really are hopeless, Al."

"Come on, Ed, it's not like that!" Al pouted.

Ed laughed and patted his brother on the shoulder. "I know, I know. I just couldn't resist."

"You're mean, Brother."

* * *

Kerria's ankle was healed by the end of the week due to her staying in bed and under the close watch of Ed and Al. Finally, she was able to go back to Central HQ with Ed and Al to begin her State Alchemist duties.

"Kerria!" Kashi exclaimed, practically pouncing on her friend when she walked in the door. "What took you so long!?"

"I…missed you too?" Kerria had almost forgotten how much energy Kashi had.

"I've been waiting and waiting for you to get back on your feet and get over here!" Kashi exclaimed as she ran over to her desk and pulled something out from under it. "Now, here! Go put this on!" she handed Kerria a box and shoved her into the bathroom across the hall before she could even say anything.

About five minutes later, Kerria peeked her head shyly into the room. "Kashi…this…looks weird." she whined.

"No, it doesn't! I'll bet it looks great!" Kashi assured her. "Now come in here so we can see!" Reluctantly, Kerria stepped into the room, revealing the outfit Kashi had chosen for her to wear as her military uniform. The outfit had a mostly blue color scheme and consisted of a dark blue and slightly tight-fitting hoodie, a very short, pleated, white skirt, loose, white socks, and dark blue sneakers. It was designed to look like a school uniform, and it went perfectly with the gloves Al had given her. "Oh, how cute!" Kashi squealed, very pleased with the choice she had made.

"I-It doesn't look weird?" Kerria blushed, pulling down on her skirt as if trying to make it seem longer. Ed and Al shook their heads and assured her that it looked nice. After hearing this, Kerria loosened up slightly and smiled.

* * *

Roy decided that the best thing for Kerria to do during the day was to help Kashi with her job of filing paperwork unless she was needed somewhere else. Kerria didn't mind this, of course; she enjoyed working with her friend. However, every chance she got, she would go down to the military library and search through the state alchemist-reserved books in hopes of finding some clues to her past.

"So, you been having any luck in the library?" Ed asked one afternoon during lunch. The four friends ate lunch together in the break room every day, and they used this time to chat with each other.

"No, none yet." Kerria said, shaking her head. "The military library sure has some interesting information, though."

"Yep, it sure does." Ed nodded.

"And the librarian girl was very nice."

"Oh, you mean Scheska?" Al joined in. "Yeah, she's great."

"Actually, it was because of us that she got this job in the military." Ed laughed. The Elric brothers could remember very clearly the time Scheska had helped them in their search for the Philosopher's Stone, and in return they got her a job in the military.

"Eh? Really? You sure do help a lot of people." Kerria smiled.

"Heh. I guess you could say that."

* * *

Ed ended up having to stay late to do extra work, so when it was time to go home, he told Al and Kerria to go ahead without him. "Don't bother waiting on me for dinner. I'll eat something here and get a ride home."

"Okay," Al nodded. "See you at home, Brother."

Kerria waved goodbye, and the two of them left for home. As they walked, Kerria noticed dark, ominous clouds start to form overhead. "Looks like a storm is coming."

"Yeah, it sure looks that way. Guess we better hurry home." Al stated. Kerria nodded in agreement and they broke into a run. However, the storm was too close and rain began to pour down before they could make it home. By the time they reached the house, the sky was pitch dark and filled with thunder and lightning.

"Well…we made it." Al laughed as he and Kerria stood dripping wet in the front hallway.

"Y-Yeah…more or less."

* * *

Kerria dried Al's hair with a towel as the two of them sat on the couch in the living room. They had just finished changing clothes up in their rooms and hanging the wet clothes by the front door to dry.

"There, all dry." Kerria smiled as she removed the towel from Al's head and gently patted his hair down in the places it was sticking up.

"Thanks," he grinned. Kerria blushed, and for a while after there was an awkward silence.

"Ahem…so, I guess we should get something to eat…it's pretty late." Kerria suggested, breaking the silence.

"Yeah, that's a good ide-"CRACK! BOOOOM! Al was suddenly cut off by a huge flash of lightning and a loud clap of thunder. The lights flickered, then went off, and the house was filled with darkness. Kerria let out a small scream and grabbed onto Al's shirt sleeve in surprise. "Aw…the power's gone out. So much for dinner, I guess." Al sighed. He put his hand on Kerria's which was still grasping his sleeve. "You okay?" he asked, a troubled tone in his voice.

"Y-Yes!" Kerria answered and quickly let go, hoping it was too dark for him to see her blushing immensely. "L-Let me go find some candles." she stood up and tried to feel her way towards the closet in the Kitchen. She could hear the rain pouring vigorously outside, and every now and then she could hear a clap of thunder. Kerria couldn't believe how nervous she was. Al had always been a good friend of hers, in fact, he was one of her only friends. But now that she thought of it--she smiled and put a hand over her heart; it was still beating rapidly.--Her feelings for him really had gotten stronger. Kerria finally reached the closet and got out a few candles, then began to feel her way back to the living room. Suddenly, there was a huge flash of lightning and clap of thunder. The whole room seemed to explode before Kerria's eyes. Terrified, she screamed and fell over backwards. Kerria and the candles all crashed to the floor; she hit her head when she fell and began to black out.

"Kerria!" Al called. "Kerria, are you alright?"

"Al…" Kerria whispered. She could hear rumbles of thunder as the world slowly began to slip away.

* * *

Kerria slowly opened her eyes and blinked a few times. "What…what happened?" she mumbled. Slowly, she sat up and looked around. She noticed that she was laying in her bed, and that the house was no longer pitch black, but just light enough to see, thanks to the lit candles scattered around the room and the rest of the house. Kerria concluded that Al must have lit them. She could hear the rain still pounding outside her bedroom window.

"Kerria?" Al's voice called from the doorway. Kerria turned to see him standing there with a folded blanket under his arm. "How are you feeling?" he asked concernedly as he walked over, sat down beside Kerria on her bed, and set down the blanket.

"I-I'm fine now. Thanks," Kerria smiled slightly.

"That's good," Al sighed with relief. "You had me worried for a minute there." The two of them sat and stared out the window, watching the lightning and listening to the thunder. Kerria suddenly started to shiver, partly from nervousness and partly because it was chilly in the house now that the power wasn't working. Al noticed her shaking and gazed at her with concern. "Are you sure you're alright?" He asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She assured him. "Just a little cold is all."

"Ah, I see." He reached over and picked up the blanket, then spread it out and pulled it over the two of them. Kerria gasped slightly and looked up at him in surprise. "Is this better?" he asked softly, hugging her close.

"Y-Yes…much better." Kerria smiled and laid her head on his shoulder; she felt so safe and warm. Then, slowly, she began to drift off to sleep.

* * *

Kerria suddenly found herself surrounded by a curtain of darkness. No matter how hard she tried, she could see nothing but black.

"Hello?" she called out to the dark. Her words echoed from somewhere, but when they came back to her, the words seemed to drive themselves into her, causing her to cry out and double over in pain. "What…is this?" she asked no one in particular. Again, the words echoed, and pain was shot through her. Then, images began to flow through Kerria's mind: memories. It was just like the day she had seen Al's memories. However, these images were not Al's memories at all…they were **hers**. Everything seemed to pour into her head at once: happiness, pain, everything she had ever seen or felt. The images weren't very clear, but the emotions they held were penetrating and overwhelming. Kerria gripped her head with both hands and cried out in pain. "No…stop…please, stop it…STOP IT!"

Kerria gasped as she was jerked awake. Breathing heavily, she looked around and realized she was in her room. "It was…a dream?" Dream or not, she could remember everything she had seen, and she wondered if it was her memories from before she was found unconscious on the streets of Central…the memories she had lost. Suddenly, Kerria heard a noise downstairs; it was the sound of the front door opening and closing.

"I'm home," Ed called drowsily as he came in through the front door. "Man, that bastard Mustang had me working all damn night."

"Oh…it's Edward." Kerria said to herself. "Guess I better get up, then." But when she tried to move, she realized that something was pinning her down. "Eh?"

"What the…?" Ed glanced curiously at Al and Kerria's, now dry, clothes hanging out in the hallway. Many thoughts came to mind, but he quickly shook them away. "Um…Al? Kerria? You guys here?"

"Ah…Wh-What?" Kerria stammered, her face turning red. The thing that was keeping her from moving…was Al! They had apparently both dozed off, and Al was still sleeping soundly, his arms wrapped around Kerria's waist and his head resting on her side. Kerria's face grew even more red as she thought about how peaceful he looked. At that moment, there was a knock on the door.

"Kerria? You in there?" Ed's voice called from the other side.

Kerria panicked and quickly answered, "Um…yes…ah, um…me and Alphonse are just…studying. Yeah, studying, so um…" as she frantically tried to think up excuses, she tried her hardest to get Al to wake up. "Alphonse," she whispered as she shook him. "Please wake up! Hurry!" But he just mumbled and stayed where he was.

"Studying, huh? Sounds great. Let me come help." Ed moved to turn the doorknob.

"NO! Uh…that's okay…really." Kerria insisted, trying to make sure that Ed didn't come into the room. Just then, Al's grip on Kerria tightened slightly and he mumbled something that only she could hear.

"Kerria…I…love you."

"Eh?" Kerria looked over at Al in surprise. Had he just said what she thought he did? At that moment, Al finally woke up and sat up in the bed, letting go of Kerria.

"Huh?" He said sleepily, rubbing his eyes. "What…" then his eyes met Kerria's and he blushed immensely as he realized they had fallen asleep together.

On the other side of the door, Ed was getting suspicious and decided that enough was enough. "Okay, that's it!" he called. "I'm coming in!"

"No!" Kerria and Al shouted at the same time, but before they could do anything, Ed had already burst through the door and was now staring at them wide-eyed. After a moment of awkward silence, Al and Kerria opened their mouths to try and explain, but Ed just turned around and left the room as fast as he could.

"Uh…I'll go make breakfast." he called over his shoulder as he headed downstairs.

Breakfast that morning was…uncomfortable, to say the least. Ed, Al, and Kerria all sat down to eat without saying a word to each other. Nobody knew **what** to say. Finally, Ed cleared his throat and both Al and Kerria turned to face him.

"I have just one thing to say…" He started, a serious tone in his voice. "And that is…" he looked over at Al and suddenly broke into a grin. "I'm so proud of you, Little Brother! To think you would grow up so fast!" Al and Kerria both blinked in shock and blushed. "So," Ed continued, turning to Kerria. "How was it?"

"B-Brother, no! It wasn't like that!" Al cried, waving his hands frantically. "I swear, nothing happened! We were just…" he quickly began to tell his brother the whole story of what happened, and explained that it was nothing but a "wrong place, wrong time" situation.

"Oh," Ed sighed when Al had finished. "I see. Well, that's a relief…I wasn't sure what I would do if you two had actually…"

"But nothing happened! I promise!" Al insisted, his face still red. While Ed began to give his little brother "the talk", Kerria was lost in her own thoughts. What exactly were those images she saw in her dream? Were they really the memories she had lost so long ago? Also, she couldn't get what Al had mumbled in his sleep out of her head. He had told her that he loved her…but he was asleep, so he couldn't have actually meant it…could he?

* * *

**A/N:** Hee hee...some fun stuff in this chapter...it was a bit choppy, I know but I had fun writing that last bit. lol! Hope you all look forward to the next chapter!


	8. Chapter 8 Beneath the Cherry Blossoms

**A/N:** Sorry it took me so long to update! I've been having some problems right now and my time to work on this story has been veeeeeeery limited...but I'm still doing my best to work on the rest of it. Sorry if this chapter seems a bit rushed...it kinda was. lol! It may take a while, but I promise that the next chapter will be up ASAP! I haven't forgotten about this story, I promise!

Also...I'd like to give a HUGE "thank you" to all of this story's readers and reveiwers. Even when things get rough, I will still continue to write just for you guys and I'm so glad that you enjoy what I write!

Now, here's the exciting new chapter! Enjoy!

* * *

Kerria sat at the kitchen table, glumly picking at her breakfast with her fork. A note lay beside her plate on the table. It read:

Kerria,

We've gone shopping and will be back in a few hours. There should be some breakfast left, so help yourself to it when you wake up. Hopefully it will still be hot enough. We didn't expect you to sleep in so late, hope you are feeling okay.

See you soon,

Ed and Al

Kerria giggled slightly at the sight of the letter; she could tell by the polite tone that it was Al who had written it. Still, breakfast was pretty boring without Ed and Al there to talk to. Kerria tried to think of ways to keep herself occupied until they returned. She thought about giving Kashi a call, but then remembered that she was at Central HQ doing some special work for Roy. Kerria sighed and stared at the food in front of her. She really didn't feel like eating; there were too many things on her mind. For one thing: the memories she had seen in her dream the day before. She was certain that they were her memories from before she was found in central, but what bothered her the most was the fact that they weren't exactly pleasant memories. She had thought about talking to Kashi about it, thinking that she would feel better if she confided in one of her best friends, but Kashi had been so busy, it would probably be a while before they could have a good "friend-to-friend" talk. Kerria sighed again and stared down at the gloves on her hands, which she had always worn ever since Al gave them to her. She still hadn't forgotten the words he had mumbled in his sleep a day earlier, and those words were on her mind almost as often as her dream was. Suddenly there was a knock on the door, and the unexpected sound surprised Kerria, snapping her out of her thoughts. "Coming!" She walked over to the door and opened it to find the Tringham brothers had come for a visit. Kerria greeted them with a smile and explained that she was home alone. "Ed and Al should be back soon, so…"

"Oh, That's just fine." Russell chuckled. "We came here to see you anyway."

"Me?"

"Yeah," Fletcher piped up. "We just got back from the library and we found some interesting books." He held out the stack of books in his arms to show her. "We thought you might enjoy reading them, and we brought them over here so we could read them together."

"Just consider it a sort of 'celebration' for your becoming a state alchemist." Russell smiled.

"Wow, thank you so much!" Kerria grinned. She couldn't even count all the times now that she had been thankful for her friends. The Elric brothers, the Tringham brothers, Kashi; she loved them all. It made her wonder if she had ever before had such good friends, but after searching in her mind through the memories she had regained so far from her dream, she concluded that she hadn't. Realizing this only made her appreciate her friends more.

Kerria, Russell and Fletcher all sat in the living room talking, laughing and having a good time. "So you guys can do alchemy with plants?" Kerria asked in an interested tone.

"Yes, our father taught us how when we were young." Russell replied.

"Can you show me?"

"Sure." Russell grabbed a nearby potted plant and set it down in front of him. "Now, the transmutation circle looks like this…" he explained as he drew the circle on the pot with a piece of chalk. "And then…" he set his hands gently on the circle. The plant began to shine with a green light and then it started to grow. It grew to almost twice its size, then the green glow faded as Russell took his hands away and the plant stopped growing. "There." Russell finished.

"Wow, that's so cool!" Kerria smiled.

"Ha ha…well, it's something, but it's not all that great. You should have seen what my father was able to do."

Russell continued to show Kerria more techniques as the afternoon wore on.

* * *

"Hey Brother," Al whined, an assortment of shopping bags in his hands. "you think we can go home now? We've been gone all day and Kerria must be getting worried."

"Relax, Al. We almost have everything we need so we'll be on our way home soon."

"We would have been home sooner…if you hadn't started so many fights." Al pouted.

"Hey! It's not my fault they mistook me for a little kid!" Ed retorted. "I've actually grown in the past few years!"

Al laughed a little to himself. "Brother, you never change."

By the time Ed and Al made it home, the sun was beginning to set. They walked into the house to find Kerria reading on the living room couch, a stack of books at her feet.

"Oh! Welcome back!" She looked up at them and smiled. "You sure were gone a long time."

"Yeah, sorry we were gone so long." Al apologized, shooting an "I told you so" glance over at Ed. "But anyway, what's with all the books? I thought we took all those back to the library."

"Oh, well Russell and Fletcher came and spent the day with me, and they brought over all these books." Kerria explained. "We had lots of fun."

"Did you now?" Ed gave Al a "See? She wasn't worried" look.

"Yeah, and the day after tomorrow they're coming again. We're going to return the books to the library and take a fun shopping trip together." Kerria smiled.

"Oh…Sounds fun." Al said with a slightly disappointed tone that only Ed seemed to pick up on.

"Yep! They're almost like my brothers now, which is exciting because I don't think I've ever had siblings." Kerria giggled to herself.

"Well, we better go put everything we bought away. Let's go, Al." Ed could tell something was up with his brother so he decided to use this excuse to talk to him about it. They both started to head into the kitchen.

"Do you want some help?" Kerria asked.

"No, thanks. We can handle it." Ed replied with a smile. Once he and Al were out of Kerria's earshot in the kitchen, Ed turned and smirked at his brother. "Well…so now you're jealous, huh?"

"I'm not jealous!" Al hissed. "Stop saying things like that, Brother. You know it's not like that."

"Oh really? Because that sounded a lot like jealousy to me."

"Well…it's not." Al stared down at the floor and paused for a few seconds. "Okay…maybe it is…a little. But there's nothing I can do about it." Al shoved the last few groceries into the pantry, then turned and went upstairs to his room. Ed sighed. His brother was still too shy to express his feelings.

* * *

A few days later, when the Tringham brothers came by again as promised, Kerria noticed that Al didn't seem like himself. This worried Kerria a bit, and she asked him if anything was wrong, but he assured her it was nothing.

"Oh…okay. See you guys later, then." Kerria smiled as she left the house with Russell and Fletcher beside her and the stack of books in her arms ready to be returned to the library.

"So where do you want to go after we're finished at the library?" Fletcher asked Kerria as they walked through town on their way to the library.

"Hm…I don't know…maybe we could stop and get a snack or something."

"Now that's a good idea," Russell stated. "I'm starving."

"That's because you slept in too late and didn't have anything to eat before we left." Fletcher laughed. Kerria was having so much fun, she forgot about how dangerous leaving the house was for her. The terrorists hadn't shown up since the battle in the warehouse basement, and Kerria had forgotten all about them.

After they finished at the library, the three of them walked around Central, stopping at shops along the way whenever they found something interesting to look at. They had fun all through the afternoon, but it soon began to get dark and they decided it was time to head back. As the three of them walked back to the Elrics' house, they noticed that the streets were suddenly dark and deserted.

"I've never been out after dark before." Fletcher stated. "It's kind of creepy." Kerria giggled as she remembered hearing Al say the same thing when they first walked home in the dark.

"Yeah, it is kind of scary," she nodded. "But it's not too bad." Kerria looked around and realized that they had ended up in Central Park; she loved the park because of its peaceful appearance, and she especially loved the huge Cherry Blossom tree that stood in the middle of the park. It was springtime now, and the tree was blooming with millions of pink flowers. A few times while shopping, Kerria had stopped to look at the tree and watch pink petals fall from it bit by bit, like a rosy snowfall. Even now that it was dark, Kerria could still see the beautiful tree, which almost seemed to glow in the moonlight. But, soon all of the flowers would fall, Kerria thought sadly, and the tree would be bare once again.

Suddenly, there was a noise and Kerria was snapped out of her thoughts. Russell motioned for Kerria and Fletcher to stop walking.

"What is it, Brother?" Fletcher whispered.

"Someone's here," Russell whispered back, looking around. "I heard something." The sound came again: the sound of footsteps; it was a normal sound that simply meant someone was approaching, but for some reason, Kerria had the feeling that these footsteps belonged to no ordinary person. Apparently, Russell had the same feeling, because he stood staring intently into the darkness, waiting for the unknown person to show themselves. Finally, a shadowy figure emerged from the dark alley; he wore a dark cloak that covered his face. The figure chuckled to himself as he spotted Kerria and the Tringham brothers.

"So," he said in a low voice. "You didn't venture out in the dark alone after all, eh, girly?" Kerria inhaled sharply and tensed up as she realized he was talking to her. The figure chuckled again. "After your little show down at the warehouse, I would have thought you'd be a bit more brave. Guess I was wrong."

Kerria gasped. "Eh? How did you…" her voice trailed off for a second as she realized he must be the leader of the terrorist group. "…W-Who are you, and just what do you want with me?"

"That is not important right now." the terrorist leader said in an almost impatient tone. Russell and Fletcher stood staring at Kerria and the unknown person, confused.

"Well I demand to know! If you were the ones at the warehouse…you were after me for some reason, right?"

"You will demand nothing!" the terrorist hissed angrily. "You dare tell me what to do?" He reached over his shoulder and pulled a katana from a sheath on his back. "Well let's see how daring you are now!" he lunged forward with the sword, ready to strike.

"Watch out!" Russell shouted, and he pushed Fletcher and Kerria out of the way just as the sword struck; Russell managed to dodge the sword just as Kerria and Fletcher hit the ground from Russell's shove. The terrorist retracted his sword and grinned at the three of them evilly.

"A quick one we have here, eh? Interesting…" Kerria and Fletcher looked up at Russell and were relieved to see that the sword had missed.

"Stay out of the way." Russell ordered them. "I'll take care of this." Fletcher and Kerria began to protest, but both of them saw the determined look on Russell's face and decided against it. They both nodded and went to stand behind a nearby tree to watch what would happen next.

"Well, wasn't that admirable?" the terrorist leader smirked. "Just stay out of this, boy, and hand over the girly."

Russell scoffed and began to draw transmutation circles on his hands. "Can't you tell?" He looked up and smirked at the terrorist as he finished drawing the circles. "If you want her…you'll have to go through me first!" Russell grabbed onto a nearby steel park bench, which was then transmuted into a sword almost identical to the terrorist's. Although Russell didn't have an imitation philosopher's stone anymore, he was still very skilled at alchemy, and sword fighting, as Kerria and Fletcher soon saw. Russell and the terrorist were evenly matched in sword fighting skill, but Russell seemed to have the advantage with alchemy; he managed to catch the terrorist leader off guard a few times when he used it. Finally, after a while of fierce battle, the two fighters paused to catch their breath. But, Kerria noticed that something was wrong: when they paused, Russell was doubled over and out of breath from fighting, but the terrorist, who had fought just as hard, was completely unfazed.

"Had enough already?" the terrorist laughed. "You ran out of energy faster than I expected. How pathetic." He lunged at Russell who, by this time, was so out of energy that he could hardly move. Kerria and Fletcher called out to Russell to warn him, but the terrorist's sword had already struck and slashed into Russell's side. He cried out in pain and fell to the ground; his sword flew out of his hands and landed a few feet away from him. Kerria and Fletcher moved to go and help.

"Stay back!" Russell shouted through gritted teeth; Kerria and Fletcher stopped in their tracks. "Didn't you see? He was going easy on me. He could've finished me off a long time ago if he wanted to, and he'll kill you if you get involved."

A wry smile shown on the terrorist's face, and he walked over towards Russell, saying "True…I could have just killed you, but I had hoped you would last longer than this. Such a pity." He stepped firmly on Russell's transmuted sword, and the steel immediately broke in half. Kerria gasped; she wondered just who he was to have so much power. Russell sat up, holding his bleeding side, and stared at the figure standing before him.

"Just who are you? To break steel in half…" he voiced Kerria's thoughts.

The terrorist leader chuckled. "I thought I already answered that question. That is not for you to know." and with that, he struck his sword once more, stabbing it into Russell's shoulder. Russell cried out again in pain and the terrorist simply laughed, as if he enjoyed hearing Russell's screams. Kerria couldn't take it anymore. She quickly ran to the tree she and Fletcher had been hiding behind and clapped her hands. She slammed her hands onto the tree, and a large root, glowing with a green color, burst from the ground and speedily snaked its way towards the terrorist. The root wrapped around his waist, and he looked down in surprise. "What the…?" Kerria saw her chance, and the root swung fiercely; The terrorist and his sword were jerked away from Russell and thrown a few feet away where they were then slammed violently into the hard, cobblestone park terrain. As soon as the terrorist hit the ground, Kerria and Fletcher ran over to Russell. His shoulder and side were both bleeding badly, and he seemed to be unconscious. His shoulder was the worst of his injuries; the terrorist's sword had been thrust deeply into it.

"Is he…going to be alright?" Fletcher asked Kerria, tears welling up in his eyes.

"I'm not sure." Kerria could feel her own eyes stinging with tears as she frantically tried to think of what to do. She knew she had to hurry, as it was only a matter of time before…

"Well, that was impressive," the icy voice of the terrorist leader came from behind them. Kerria and Fletcher turned to look at him in terror. He rubbed the side of his neck casually, as if he had just received a minor jolt; however, this kind of reaction was what Kerria had expected from such a powerful person. Her only intention with that attack had been to get him away from Russell. The terrorist continued, "Now, if you want to save your friend…then come with me, girly, and just maybe I'll heal him for you. But, if you resist…" He looked threateningly at Russell and Fletcher.

Kerria sprang to her feet. "No! Please, you've already hurt my friends enough!" she cried, tears spilling down her cheeks. The terrorist leader stared at Kerria, waiting for her answer. Kerria knew that every moment she wasted pondering her decision meant a moment less for Russell, so she quickly came to her decision. She knew it wasn't exactly the best choice she could make, but she couldn't allow her friends to be involved anymore. It was obvious that these people were after her for some reason, and Kerria knew that they would only continue hurting her friends until she cooperated. Kerria wiped her tears, took a deep breath, and looked straight at the terrorist. "I…I'll go with you."

"Kerria!" Fletcher gasped. "You can't!"

Kerria ignored Fletcher and continued. "But…please…just give me a little more time…to be with my friends. I want to be happy with them…for just a while longer."

The figure sighed and pondered her request for a second. "Well…I suppose you'll be easier to work with if you come willingly. Very well." He pointed to the large Cherry Blossom tree that Kerria loved. "When the very last flower falls from that tree, your time will be up. You have until then to get your personal affairs in order." He turned swiftly and started to walk off.

"W-wait! What about-"

"Heal him yourself," the figure said over his shoulder. "You can, can't you?"

"But, I-" Before Kerria could finish, the figure disappeared into the darkness from which he came. Kerria sighed and looked uneasily at Russell and Fletcher. She could heal Russell herself, but she was afraid to because of what happened the last time she used healing alchemy; she was afraid of seeing more memories that she shouldn't see. But, time was running out, so she decided that healing Russell was more important. She walked over and put her hand on Fletcher's shoulder comfortingly. "Everything will be fine, I promise." she then knelt down beside Russell and performed on his wounds the healing alchemy she had learned. His injuries were too serious to be completely healed, but Kerria managed to stop the bleeding at least. After she finished, she sighed with relief; Russell was going to be fine, and nothing like last time had happened. A voice nagging at the back of her mind asked why that was, but she ignored it, as she had other things on her mind right now.

"Um…Kerria…?" Fletcher started.

"He'll be fine." Kerria said, her voice suddenly shaky.

"Kerria…are you really going to go…with that guy?"

Kerria couldn't hold back anymore and tears streamed down her face. "I…have to." she sobbed. "Or else…someone else will get hurt." She buried her face in her hands and cried. How was she ever going to explain this to Kashi, Al and Ed? Knowing them, they would try to protect her like Russell had and end up getting hurt…or worse. Just then, Kerria felt something heavy on her head and looked up to see that Russell was sitting up and giving her the best smile he could, his hand resting on her head reassuringly. Kerria smiled with relief that he was okay, but seeing the pained look on his face convinced her: Kashi, Al and Ed must never know what happened that night.

* * *

By the time Kerria returned home after making sure the Tringham brothers were safe, it was almost midnight. Kerria snuck into the house; she looked around to make sure Ed and Al weren't around, then started up the stairs to her room.

"Kerria?" a very familiar voice called behind her. Kerria stopped and spun around.

"A-Alphonse? I thought you'd be asleep."

"I…couldn't sleep. I was worried."

"Worried?"

"Yeah, I thought you'd be home hours ago." He paused, then asked slowly, "Did something happen?"

"No, nothing happened." Kerria assured him, smiling. "I'm sorry I made you worry, I was just having so much fun with Russell and Fletcher that I lost track of time."

"O-Oh. Okay…"

"Well, it **is** late…so we should both be getting to bed. Good night, Alphonse." Kerria smiled and began to climb the stairs to her room.

"Good night." Al said after her. He didn't follow her up to his own room; instead, he stared at the ground for a moment, then mumbled to himself, "That doesn't make me feel any better."

Kerria closed her door behind her. "That was close," she breathed. She hated lying to Al, but she would hate herself even worse if any more of her friends got hurt. She sighed, knowing that she would never be able to get some sleep. The terrorist's words still rang through her head; "When the last flower falls…your time will be up." Kerria went to the window and gazed at the giant tree off in the distance. The cruel beauty of the moonlit blossoms made Kerria's heart leap, as she knew that this tree held her fate. Slowly, Kerria got in bed and fell into a restless sleep, that night's events swarming through her mind all night long.


	9. Chapter 9 Firefly Grass

**A/N:** Eep! I haven't worked on this story in forever! I'm so sorry to everyone who has been waiting and waiting to see what happens next! I've just had so much going on that I haven't had much time for anything at all. But now that school's out for summer, I promise I'll try my hardest to continue writing! So, moving right along, here's chapter 9!

* * *

"Kerria? Earth to Kerria?" Kashi waved her hand in front of her friend's blank face.

"Huh?" Kerria blinked. "Oh, sorry. I was staring off into space again." she laughed sheepishly.

"Geez, you've been doing that a lot lately. What's going on?"

"Nothing's wrong. I'm just…tired I guess." It wasn't a complete lie; Kerria hadn't been able to sleep ever since the night when she and the Tringham brothers came face-to-face with the leader of the terrorist group who had kidnapped Kashi not too long ago and caused so much chaos. So many things had been on her mind lately, but no matter how much she wanted to, Kerria knew that she couldn't say anything to her friends. She had to act normal so they would not get involved.

At that moment, Ed and Al came into the room.

"Hey Kerria and Kashi, we've got some good news!" Al said cheerfully.

"Good News?" Kerria and Kashi questioned.

"Yeah," Ed grinned. "There hasn't been much going on lately, so Mr. Sarcasm decided to give us all a day off tomorrow!"

Kerria smiled. "Well that was nice of Mr. Mustang to--"

"YES! DAY OFF!" Kashi jumped up excitedly, punching her fist above her head. "Let's have a party to celebrate!"

"A…A party?" Kerria stared at her friend wide-eyed.

"Yeah! We can eat sweets and have fun and…and…drink alcohol!" Kashi shouted excitedly.

"A-Alcohol?" Al blinked. "B-But we can't do that, we're all underage!" he waved his arms in frantic protest.

"Aw, who cares? No one will know!" Kashi grinned. "So it's settled! Tomorrow we'll all party at your house!"

"Hey! Who said you could come and trash our house with your party?" Ed yelled at Kashi.

Kashi just grinned even wider and said, "I did!"

Kerria laughed to herself, a little excited about what the next day would be like.

* * *

Kashi showed up the next day just as she had promised, her hands full of snacks. She greeted them with a cheerful exclamation of "Hey guys, ready to party?"

Kerria forced herself to smile and clear her head, at least for the moment. She decided that if her friends wanted a party, then the least she could do was enjoy it. "Yeah, let's have some fun!"

* * *

Kerria stared curiously at the tall, glass bottle in Kashi's hands. They had all been munching on sweets and doing random things under the influence of large sugar intakes almost all day, so now it was time for the "main event".

"Behold!" Kashi raised the bottle above her head and Kerria could see a strange, clear liquid sloshing around inside. "This is the main event of the evening!"

"But what is it?" Al asked innocently.

"Aw, damn, don't tell me…" Ed started.

"That's right! This, my friends, is the greatest beverage of all time! This…is sake! And I'm going to make you all drink it!" Kashi laughed evilly and pulled the cork off of the drink with a loud POP! "Now, who wants to try it first?"

* * *

Kashi eventually suckered everyone into drinking at least half their weight in sake, and it was at this moment that Ed discovered…he was the only one in the house who wasn't completely drunk. He sat back and enjoyed the show as the others continued to make fools out of themselves. Al and Kerria were fine until about their fifth drink, and were now acting as if they had suddenly transformed into a pair of kittens; meowing, rolling around on the floor, and rubbing up against random objects. Kashi was the first to go haywire, and she was running around the house as if she were even more hyped up on sugar than before; only this time, she seemed to be having strange hallucinations. She ran around the entire house claiming that pink monkeys were invading. "Edward!" She exclaimed, ceasing her running to stand in front of him. "Th-The pink monkeys are coming! They're…_everywhere_!" At that moment, it seemed that the sake had finally gotten to Ed, as he suddenly found himself acting completely out of character. He scooped Kashi up into his arms as if he were a prince out of a storybook, and he appeared to have stolen Major Armstrong's sparkles!

"Fear not, Dear Kashi…for I shall not let the pink monkeys harm you." He said in a voice so prince-like, it was hard to believe he was the same Edward Elric.

"Oh, my hero!" Kashi cried, her eyes sparkling.

The four of them continued being crazily drunk all through the evening, and finally fell asleep later that night.

* * *

Kerria slowly opened her eyes and tried to remember just where she was and what had happened in the past few hours. She looked around and realized she was on the living room floor of the Elric's house; she could see Ed and Kashi sprawled out and fast asleep on the couch, and next to her on the floor was Al, also sound asleep. Kerria suddenly felt a sharp pain in her head and concluded that everyone must have had way too much to drink that night. She stumbled to her feet and looked to see what time it was; it was after 1:00 in the morning. Kerria shuffled sleepily into the kitchen and poured herself some water to drink. After drinking the water, her head started to feel better, so she decided to go sit out in the backyard and get some fresh air. Kerria had never seen the backyard of the house before, but she had heard from Ed that Al planted a garden out there, so she decided to check it out.

"Wow!" Kerria breathed. As soon as she opened the door to the backyard, she was met with the bright glow of a garden filled with beautiful, blue flowers. "How amazing…I wonder what flowers those are." Suddenly she felt someone's presence behind her and turned around just as Al walked up and put a blanket around her shoulders. "A-Alphonse…?"

"It's called Firefly Grass," Al explained. "Pretty, isn't it? It only blooms at night."

"Oh…I see. Did you plant them all yourself?"

"Ha ha…I guess you could call it a hobby." The two of them went and sat down together on one of the benches on the porch and gazed at the stunning flowers. "You know…there's a legend that says if you hold Firefly Grass to your chest and pray while it's in bloom, then the person you're thinking of will be able to feel it, no matter how far away they are."

"Really? No matter how far?" Kerria asked. Al nodded and gave her a smile. Kerria looked up and gazed off into the distance at the giant Cherry Blossom tree in Central Park; the petals on the tree were already half gone. She began to wonder just how far away the terrorists would take her once the huge tree was finally bare and her time with the Elrics was up. She wondered if the legend of the Firefly Grass could even reach that distance, and before she knew it, her eyes began to sting with tears.

"Kerria?" Al saw a few tears start to stream down her face. "Wh-What's wrong?"

Kerria shook her head and sobbed, "I-I'm sorry. It's nothing, really, I just--" Before she could finish, Al had grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her into a hug. Kerria could feel his hot face against hers and she could tell he was blushing fiercely.

"You…you don't have to hide things from me." He told her. "I-If it's something that's bothering you…then…you can tell me about it." Kerria smiled to herself and decided that now was the perfect time to set something straight which had been bothering her for a while.

"Um…A-Alphonse? Actually…there's something that's been on my mind for a while…" Al released his hold on her and gave her a look saying he was ready to hear what she had to say. Kerria could feel her own face start to heat up as she continued. "You…you said something…in your sleep…that one time when we…ahem…uh, well…you know."

"Y-Yes?" Al could already tell where this was going, and his face turned even redder.

"W-Well…did you mean that? That you…l-lo-" Kerria was so red, she was sure she must have looked like a tomato by now.

"Oh…you…heard me?" Al's expression suddenly changed to a mixture of worry and embarrassment. "I-I-I didn't mean for it to b-b-bother you, I just…I…" Kerria's heart was beating so fast, she was afraid it would burst out of her chest, and judging by the way Al was gazing downward, she could tell he was feeling the same. Finally, Al gathered his courage, looked up at Kerria, and forced his words out. "I-I…I really do. I love you, Kerria."

Kerria smiled as a few more tears streamed down her face. She knew that what she was about to do next would make it even harder for her to leave when the time came, but her heart just would not listen to reason. "I…I'm so glad." she sobbed. "Because I…feel the same way. I love you, too." She tried to wipe away her tears, but they just kept coming. Apparently, joy mixed with sorrow makes twice as many tears. Al stared at her for a moment, not knowing what to do. Then it finally came to him. "I-I'm sorry…I just…can't stop cry-" she gasped as Al's hand reached out and gently brushed the hair out of her face. She looked up at him through her tears and she could see the blurry outline of his face. Slowly, he leaned forward, resting his hand on her cheek and gently pulling her face towards his. Kerria closed her eyes and braced herself for what she knew was coming. Finally, Al closed the distance between them, and the two of them shared a kiss for the first time. A surge of warmth rapidly filled Kerria's body, sending chills up and down her spine. Kerria completely lost herself in the moment, which seemed to last forever. When Al let her go, she slowly opened her eyes and gazed at him, smiling. She tried to say something, but her mouth had suddenly forgotten how to form words. She wanted to tell him how much she wished they could stay together, and she wanted to tell him everything that had happened, but she knew that she shouldn't.

"You still look like you have something on your mind." Al sighed and put a hand on her shoulder. "What's bothering you?" Kerria realized that she wouldn't be able to hide what was going on for much longer, but she had to in order to keep everyone, especially Al, out of harm's way. However, there was one thing she could tell him about.

Kerria took a deep breath. "Well…I had…this dream…and through that dream I regained all of my memories."

Al gasped. "Y-You mean…?"

"Yes. I know where I came from. Well…I'm not quite sure exactly where…but I do remember this much: I was born an orphan and I didn't have many friends. I was passed around from family to family, but nobody ever really wanted me; I was always pushed onto people, and for that they hated me. When I turned 16…that was when the men came."

"Men?"

"Yes. They told the family I was living with that I was to be sent somewhere else, and they took me away. I don't know where it was exactly. The first night I was there, they put me in a small room with hardly anything in it…I cried myself to sleep that night, and the next thing I knew, I was standing in front of a huge door…that's how I ended up here."

"A door?" Al asked in surprise. "A big door…Kerria, do you remember what it looked like?"

Kerria nodded. "It was really tall and had lots of strange shapes carved into it."

"That's…Could it be…?"

"What is it?"

"Kerria," Al started. "I think…you may have come from…the other side of the gate!"

"The gate? What's that?"

"I think it's the big door you saw…those men must have somehow transported you through the gate and into our world! But…why would they?"

Kerria realized then that the men she remembered must be the terrorists, and that must be why they were after her. They were the reason she was here in the first place! But…why did they send her here, and what did they want with her now?

"So…is that why you were crying before?" Al asked, breaking the silence. "Because of that dream?"

"Ah…Y-Yeah. It's been on my mind for a while…and I guess it got me a little worked up." Kerria laughed a little to try and assure him that it was the only thing that had been bothering her, even though she knew it was a lie.

"I see…well the good news is, now we have a better idea of where you came from." Al smiled, and then began to turn red as he added, "And the really good news is…you won't be going back, will you?"

"Eh?" Kerria gave him a questioning look.

"W-Well…" Al blushed even more and looked down at the ground. "I mean…you didn't like your life back then, right? So…that means you'll stay here…with us…a-and…with me?"

Kerria fought back tears and finally managed to answer with a slight smile, "Y-Yeah…of course I will."

Another lie.

* * *

"The gate?" Roy looked up from his newspaper and gave Ed a questioning look.

"That's what Al told me." Ed stated. "He said that from what Kerria told him, it seems like she came from the other side of the gate."

"Hm…well that would explain a lot," Roy pondered. "It sure would explain why the terrorists are after her." Ed nodded in agreement. "Not only that, but I looked into your little idea about the terrorists being involved in those serial killings a while back."

"Oh, really? And?"

"I couldn't find anything linking the two, but after hearing what you just told me, I think there just might be something." Roy reached into his desk drawer, pulled out one of his case files, and started looking through it. "Ah, here it is. Now, do you know how long Kerria was in Central before she started living with you and your brother?"

"Um…a month, if I remember right."

Roy smirked and chuckled to himself. "Well, what do you know…it's just as I thought. Take a look at this." Roy handed the file to Ed.

Ed scanned the paper for a moment, and then gasped, "The murders…they started almost right after Kerria appeared in Central!"

"So, Kerria appears, the murders start, and then right after they mysteriously stop, terrorists go after Kerria. It's too perfect to be a coincidence, if you ask me."

"But…something's still not right." Ed pondered. "Why did these terrorists start killing in the first place, and what do they want with Kerria?"

Roy sighed. "I don't know, but I've got a really bad feeling about all this."

"Yeah…same here."

* * *

**A/N:** Hope you all enjoyed chapter 9! I had lots of fun writing it...especially the Al X Kerria scene. I'm sorry to say it, but this story is coming to its end soon. I loved working on it, though, so I just might write another fic whenever I get the time! Look forward to the next chapter!


	10. Chapter 10 Finale

**A/N:** Last chapter! I can't believe it's finished! Me and my friend/editor, Kashi worked hard on this story and I hope you all have enjoyed it. Also, be sure to read my author's note at the end of the story to learn some important info! (Oh, and sorry for suddenly changing the name of the story. I finally found a good name for it so, I'm sorry if anyone was confused.)

Enjoy the last chapter!

* * *

"Okay, now that we're all here, there's something we all need to talk about." Ed stated. He had gathered Al, Kerria, and Kashi together at the dining room table to discuss something very important. "We all know that the terrorists are after Kerria. What we don't know is why…but Mustang, Al, and I think it has something to do with The Gate." 

"The Gate? Wow…that's some serious stuff!" Kashi exclaimed.

"Exactly. So, I think that from now on, we should all keep an eye on Kerria…even more than before. I have a bad feeling about these terrorists, and I have a feeling that they'll be making a big move soon." Al and Kashi agreed that protecting Kerria was a good idea, and so they all decided to keep a close watch on her from then on. As they talked, Kerria looked outside the window at the Cherry Blossom tree that held her fate. There were only a few flowers left on the tree, meaning her time was almost up. Kerria's eyes began to sting with tears as she thought about it, but she held them back so her friends wouldn't see.

"Kerria?" Al's voice snapped Kerria out of her thoughts and she turned to face her three friends. "Are you okay? You spaced out for a minute."

"Oh…y-yeah, I'm fine. Sorry, what were you guys saying?"

"We were talking about watching over you so the terrorists don't get you." Kashi explained. "So for the next few days, I'll be staying over here."

"Oh, I see." Kerria forced a smile. "Thanks, you guys. You're the best."

"Yeah, yeah, we know ya love us!" Kashi laughed, then gave Kerria a sly look and added, "One…more than the others."

"Huh?"

"Oh, did you think I wasn't watching? Yes, I know all about you, Al, your little moment…and the Firefly Grass! BWAHAHA!" Kashi laughed evilly.

"E-Eh? You were watching?" Kerria blushed and looked over at Al, whose face was twice as red as hers.

"Geez, Kashi…" Ed shook his head in disappointment. "That was a mean thing to do…you shouldn't spy on people."

Kashi stopped her evil laughing and gave Ed a questioning look. "What? But you were watching too."

"Sh-Shut up!" Ed snapped. "I saw them on accident okay?"

Kerria and Al laughed and gave each other an, "Oh well, they know now", look.

* * *

That night, all of them slept in the living room after staying up almost all night talking. Everyone was asleep except for Kerria; no matter how hard she tried to sleep, thoughts kept on pouring into her mind, keeping her awake. Finally, she gave up and walked over to the window. After looking out at the cherry blossom tree in the distance, she realized that the flowers were almost gone. If she wasn't at the tree when time was up, then the terrorists would probably come looking for her, and her friends would get involved. So, she decided it was time to go. Kerria quickly and quietly changed out of her pajamas and prepared to leave. She headed for the door, and then remembered something: the gloves Al had given her. She hurried back up to her room and grabbed them, then came back downstairs. She walked over to the couch where Al was sleeping and gently ran her fingers through his hair a few times; she knew he was the one who she would miss the most. "Well, I'm off." she said quietly, tears welling up in her eyes. As she slipped on her gloves and started out the door, she looked back at her three friends and started to cry. "I'm sorry," she said softly. "I'll miss you all, but this way is better for everyone." With that, she shut the door behind her and started to run towards the giant tree. The whole time she ran, tears flowed down her cheeks, and she almost felt stupid for running towards danger instead of away from it. But, as long as her friends stayed safe, that didn't really matter to her. 

Kerria finally arrived at the tree, out of breath from running. She looked up at the branches; there were so few flowers left that she could hardly see them. All she could see was a few pink patches among hundreds of bare branches. However, one thing was for sure: she didn't have much time. Kerria sat under the tree and waited, tears still flowing down her cheeks. She hugged her knees and sat crying into her arms. She wished so badly that she could have stayed with her friends. Why is it, that when she had finally found friends, and finally found someone that she truly loved, they were going to be so cruelly snatched away from her? She almost wished that she could just die there, under that tree, so that she could never feel lonely again and never risk hurting her friends again. At that moment, a gust of wind wafted through the tree and Kerria looked up just in time to see the last flower snap off of its branch at the top of the tree and begin to fall. Kerria stood and watched the flower drop; it seemed to be moving in slow motion, floating slowly all the way down from the top of the tree. It gradually made its way down until it finally touched the ground right in front of Kerria's feet. Fear suddenly struck Kerria as the wind began to pick up. Her heart began to beat faster and louder until she could hear it pounding loudly in her ears, and she waited for the moment she knew would eventually come.

"Well, well…" a low voice said behind her. "I was afraid you wouldn't show, girly."

Kerria quickly wiped her tears and turned to face the terrorist leader. "O-Of course I did. I said before…I won't let you harm my friends. If I hadn't come, you would have come looking for me, am I right?"

"Well, now. At least you aren't stupid. Now you'll be a good girly and come with us, won't you?"

Kerria swallowed the lump that had begun to form in her throat and answered, "Yes, I will."

"Very good. Let's go, then." The terrorist leader began to walk away, and Kerria followed, thinking that this would be goodbye forever.

"Kerria!" The sound of a very familiar voice calling her name made both she and the terrorist turn around in surprise. Kerria's eyes grew wide with terror as she saw who was running towards her. "Kerria, wait!" Al called out to her, Ed and Kashi running alongside him.

"NO! STAY AWAY!" Kerria screamed. Al, Ed, and Kashi all stopped in their tracks, only a few feet away from Kerria and the terrorist leader, and looked at her in confusion.

"Well, what's this now?" The terrorist leader said in a threatening tone. "You've all come to interfere?" He looked over at Kerria. "Think you could have your little friends come and beat me up, did you?"

"N-No, no! They weren't…supposed…to know." Kerria looked down at the ground. "S-So please…leave them alone."

"Kerria…when I woke up and you weren't there…well, we were all worried…but why are you here…with him?" Al asked in bewilderment. Ed and Kashi didn't know what to say, as they were still in shock.

"Oh…" The terrorist leader began to chuckle. "Oh, I see. They didn't know. So you were betraying them…how interesting!" he laughed to himself, seeming to enjoy that thought.

"No! I wasn't!" Kerria turned to her friends. "I was only hiding it from you because I didn't want--"

"Didn't want what? Didn't want your friends to find out who you really are?"

"I…What do you mean…?"

"Oh? Even you don't know? I thought you got back all of your memories."

"She did." Ed spoke up, interested in hearing Kerria's full story. "But even after that, we still couldn't figure out just who she was."

The terrorist leader laughed. "Really now? Well, this girl just so happens to be 'Moagi': The legendary key that is said to open the Great Door and bestow amazing power to whoever opens it."

"The 'Great Door'?" Kashi pondered. "But that must be…"

"The Gate." Ed finished her sentence.

"Is that what it's called in this world?" The terrorist asked curiously. "Well, in our world, most people have no idea that this door even exists. But the legend of the Great Door has been passed through my family for generations, and when this girl, the Moagi, appeared, our association was finally able to take action."

"So that's why you've been chasing after her all this time." Al stated.

"Precisely. I have to say, she was hard to find. During the association's first test of the door's ability, she was transported through it and ended up here. Unfortunately, all of her memories were lost and so she mindlessly ran off when we came to look for her. Luckily, the door didn't have the same effect on us when we came through."

"Then…all those murders…?" Kashi started.

"Ah, yes, well searching for this girl was even harder than we expected. At the time, we had no idea what she looked like; only the higher-ups of the association had actually seen her face. So, we had to go around testing anyone her age who could possibly be the one we were searching for. It really was a hassle. Of course, all of them turned out not to be who we were searching for, and they ended up learning all of our secrets so it was necessary to kill them in order to keep them from talking."

"So all those people…died because of me?" Kerria's voice became shaky. "This is all my fault."

"No it's not, Kerria!" Al exclaimed.

"Yeah, you shouldn't blame yourself!" Kashi added.

"Well, what's done is done," The terrorist leader shrugged, as the wind started to pick up again. "And now that my explanation is over, it is time to fulfill my destiny." Before anyone could even move, the terrorist thrust his hand at the giant tree behind Kerria, which started to glow with a bright, yellow light. Kerria and the others looked up in surprise at the tree as all of its roots suddenly sprung up from the ground and wrapped themselves around Kerria, keeping her from moving.

"Kerria!" Al lunged forward to help her, but before he could reach her, she was hoisted up into the air by the tree. Kerria screamed and tried to break free as she was lifted out of Al's reach and about halfway up the tree.

The terrorist laughed. "And now, the real fun can begin!" He turned to Ed, Al, and Kashi. "Now that I've told you everything, I'm afraid you three will have to die" With a wave of his hand, a whole troop of terrorists appeared out of nowhere, armed and ready to fight.

"It's the same guys from the warehouse!" Ed gasped as he, Al, and Kashi readied themselves for battle; then they all lunged forward and began their attack on the terrorists. Kerria watched her friends battling below her as she desperately struggled to break free from the tree's grip on her; she was now pinned against its trunk by a tangle of branches. Suddenly she gasped as the terrorist leader appeared before her, standing on one of the tree's roots which had apparently lifted him up there the same way it had lifted her.

"Well now, are you comfortable up here, Moagi?" The terrorist leader grinned at her evilly. "It's too bad that your plan to keep your friends out of trouble didn't work. My men will soon have them finished off." He laughed to himself as he saw Kerria's face change to a mixed expression of terror and anger. "Now, let's watch as they are destroyed. This should be interesting." Kerria watched painfully as her friends tried their hardest to fight against the terrorists. However, like Russell, they were no match for the extreme power the terrorists possessed, and it seemed that they couldn't hold on for much longer. The terrorist leader sighed impatiently as he looked down at the battle below. "Aren't they done yet? Your friends just don't know when to give up." Kerria ignored him and desperately tried to think of something that she could do, anything. But she realized that in her current position, she was completely helpless. She felt angry at herself for not being more careful; because she had been acting strange, she made her friends worry and now they were in danger just as she had feared. "Oh well," the terrorist leader suddenly spoke again. "I'm getting bored, so I guess I'll just go ahead and start." he put his hand on Kerria's forehead and started to mutter something in a language she couldn't understand. As soon as he began chanting, The sky became dark and ominous, and the wind picked up even more than before until an entire storm was swirling around the tree. At that moment, the terrorists who had been fighting down below all suddenly disappeared, to Ed, Al, and Kashi's surprise.

"Thought so." Ed stated, gripping his left arm which had been badly injured. "They were just decoys."

"Y-Yeah. It looks that way." Kashi agreed as she collapsed to her knees, out of breath from fighting; Al did the same.

"H-He…must have been using them…as a distraction." Al panted. They all turned to the giant tree, knowing that the worst was yet to come.

Suddenly, the tree started to glow again, this time with a strange, black light; Kerria felt pain shoot throughout her body and screamed in terror.

"K-Kerria!" Al shouted. He tried to move, but as soon as he did, he felt a sharp pain in his legs, forcing him back down to the ground.

As the terrorist leader finished his spell, he began to laugh as if in chorus with Kerria's screams. "That's it!" he shouted excitedly. "You can feel it can't you? The power of the Great Door is awakening, and ultimate power will soon be mine!" He threw his arms up triumphantly into the air, and a huge bolt of lightning shot down from the sky, striking the tree. The branches that were holding Kerria suddenly became as sharp as needles and dug their way into her skin. Again, the terrorist laughed. "How does it feel? You have now become one with this tree, and it will continue feeding on you until the ceremony is complete! Oh, I've waited all my life for this moment! Once I have the Great Door's ultimate power, the higher-ups at the association will be bowing down to me!" He bellowed. Kerria suddenly felt nauseous and weak as the life was slowly sucked out of her. She knew she had to try and do something, but her mind was clouded by the pain and the feeling of blood pouring from the places where the branches were digging into her. Ed, Al, and Kashi all stared up at the tree and watched as it slowly started to transform into a large door.

"The gate!" Kashi gasped.

"N-No! We have to do something!" Al exclaimed, as he desperately tried to stand. "If we don't hurry…Kerria will…!"

"Al…You shouldn't stand." Ed told him as he stood and walked over to help Kashi to her feet. "Your injuries…"

"I'm fine!" Al yelled as he finally forced himself to stand up. "Kerria…she needs our help!"

Ed sighed. "Well in that case…let's go!" They all went as fast as they could towards the base of the tree. "Okay, we don't have much time." Ed started, looking up as more and more of the gate appeared. "We have to somehow find a way to destroy this tree."

"Why the tree?" Kashi asked.

"Because I think that the tree is transforming itself into the gate."

"So that means, we destroy the tree and the gate disappears." Al stated.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." A voice said from above them. They all looked up to face the terrorist leader, who had a smug look on his face. "You see this?" he stepped aside to show them Kerria, who was still bound to the tree, now almost completely unconscious and covered in her own blood.

"Kerria!" Al gasped. "What have you done to her?"

The terrorist laughed. "Don't you see? There's nothing you can do! This girl is now bound to this tree, not to mention the Great Door! She will die soon enough, but try to destroy this tree and you'll only destroy her as well!"

"No…" Kashi breathed; she turned to Ed. "Isn't there another way?" Ed stared at the ground, desperately trying to think.

"Kerria…" Al's hands clenched into fists. There just had to be another way. Kerria couldn't die, she just couldn't.

BOOOOOOOOOM! The ground suddenly shook, and Ed, Al and Kashi all cried out as they were thrown to the ground. They looked up in surprise and watched the tree shudder as the last of the gate began to appear.

"No…it's almost finished!" Kashi gasped.

"Dammit!" Ed cursed.

The tremor of the earth below her shook Kerria slightly back to her senses, and through blurred vision she watched her friends desperately try to hold on as the earth continued to tremble. Quickly, she tried to think before she started to slip out of consciousness again. What could she do? Then it came to her: the terrorist had mentioned destroying the tree to her friends just a minute ago. That would destroy the gate. But, if she did that, she knew that her life would be forfeit. Plus, the terrorist leader would still be alive and able to cause more trouble. Then, she suddenly got another idea, one to destroy the terrorist. She knew that if she did what she planned, then her own life may have to be sacrificed, but to her, that didn't matter. The thing she wished for more than anything was to be able to stay with her friends forever, but deep down, all she wanted was for them to be alive and well, and if that meant sacrificing herself, then so be it.

Kerria could hear the laughs of the terroist leader start to chime in along with the rumbles of the earth down below, and realized that she didn't have much time; the time to act was now. Slowly, she managed to move around enough and get her hands free, then clapped them together and touched them to the tree. Suddenly, one of the roots that the terroist was standing on became sharp and stabbed into the terrorist's leg.

"AGH!" He cried out in pain and glared at Kerria. "You! What do you think you're doing?"

Down below, Ed, Al, and Kashi heard the terrorist's screams and looked up.

"Kerria?" Kashi breathed.

"What is she doing?" Al pondered.

"I…told you…" Kerria panted, her energy drained. "You can't…hurt my friends!" with that, she clapped her hands and slammed them into the tree once more.

There was an explosion of light as the giant tree slowly began to crack and crumble.

"No! This can't be happening!" The terrorist cried. "All of my life's work! NOOOOOO!" Bit by bit, the tree disintegrated, taking the gate and the terrorist leader with it; Ed, Al and Kashi all watched in awe.

"D-Did Kerria…?" Kashi started, her voice trembling.

"I think she did." Ed answered. "She…destroyed the tree…and the gate. Not to mention…she saved our lives."

Al's eyes began to sting with tears. "Does that mean…she's…?"

"Hey, look!" Kashi pointed upward and Ed and Al turned to look at what she saw. A figure was falling down from the crumbling mass; as it got closer, everyone could see that it was…

"Kerria!" Al shouted, stumbling as fast as he could to where he estimated she would hit the ground, and arriving there just in time to catch her in his arms, then collapse to his knees in pain and exhaustion. Ed and Kashi came up behind him.

"Is she okay?" Ed asked.

"I…I don't know." Al's hands trembled as he stared down at Kerria's limp, blood-covered body. "K-Kerria? Can you hear me?" his voice was shaky and he felt his eyes begin to well up with tears again. "Please…say something."

At that moment, Kerria's eyes slowly began to open, and her friends all smiled with relief. "A-Al…" Kerria whispered.

"Kerria!" He hugged her as tears came streaming down his face. "I thought you were…"

"Alphonse…everyone…I'm sorry." Kerria sobbed as her eyes welled up with tears. "I…don't have…much time."

"Wh-What?" Al started. "What do you mean?"

"I…in order to destroy the gate and the terrorist…I had to…"

Al began to panic as he realized what she was getting at. He gently placed a trembling hand on Kerria's chest, and his eyes widened in horror. "H-Her heartbeat!" It was so weak, he could hardly feel it. Ed and Kashi gasped.

"I'm so sorry." Kerria continued, tears pouring down her cheeks. "Really…all I wanted…was to stay…with you…all of you."

"Kerria…please, don't give up!" Al held her close to him and sobbed into her shoulder. "Please, you can't die!"

Kerria slowly reached out and hugged him. "I…wish it didn't have to be this way. I really love…all of you…my only friends. I'll miss you." she looked up at Ed and Kashi, who were both desperately trying to hold back tears, but she could tell that they were both about to give in. "Alphonse," Kerria whispered. He lifted his head from her shoulder to look at her face, and she gave him the best smile she could. "No matter what happens…I'll still love you….always."

"I know." Al sobbed. "I…I love you too." He gently leaned in and kissed her one last time, and then, like the tree and the gate, she began to disintegrate bit by bit, floating up into the sky, until there was nothing left. Al stared down at his quivering hands, still covered in Kerria's blood, then buried his face into them and cried. Ed and Kashi put their hands on his shoulders and sat down beside him. The three of them sat there for the longest time, crying and mourning over the loss of their most cherished friend.

* * *

Kerria's funeral was short but sweet, although for Al, Kashi, and Ed it seemed to last forever. Evidently, there were no remains to bury, but a tombstone was made and placed in the cemetery for memory. The Tringham brothers came by to hear the story of what happened and pay their respects, but they left soon after because they both had work to do. After the service, Al and Kashi simply stood staring at the gravestone, lost in thought. Ed, however, had to go to Headquarters and give his report on what had taken place a few days ago. 

"It's been about a week, Fullmetal." Roy started. "Are you sure you're ready to talk about this?" Ed assured him that he was fine and explained exactly what happened that night. When he was finished, Roy didn't say anything. He sat there for a few minutes rubbing his forehead thoughtfully, then finally spoke. "I've got to say, Fullmetal…when I said I wanted all of our questions answered, I sure wasn't hoping it would all end up like this." Ed nodded. "Well, what's done is done, I guess. Needless to say, we now have one less mystery on our hands." Roy sighed, and after a few moments he added, "We'll all miss her, though."

"Yeah."

* * *

Even though a week had already passed, Al's mood stayed the same. He hardly ever left his room anymore, and when he did, he was always quiet and staring off into space. Ed and Kashi knew that he would be affected by Kerria's death the most, but they didn't think it would be this bad. So, one night at dinner, Ed decided it was time to stop leaving him alone and take some action. 

Ed cleared his throat. "Hey…Al?"

"Yes, Brother?"

"Oh! So you can speak! I thought you might have gone mute." Ed joked.

Al stared at his plate for a moment, then smiled and answered, "I'm fine, really. Sorry if I haven't talked much, I just…don't know what there is to say."

"It does seem kind of dreary around here, huh?" Ed sighed. "Tell you what, let's go shopping tomorrow. Maybe we can find something that'll cheer you up."

Al smiled and nodded. "Yeah, let's do that."

* * *

Ed and Al walked through the marketplace, buying groceries and anything else that looked interesting. Once the sun began to set, they decided to call it a day and head home. 

"Well, are you feeling any better, Al?" Ed asked.

"A little, thanks."

They left the marketplace and began to head for home, when suddenly something caught Al's eye: a flicker of brown, fluffy fur in the grass by the side of the road.

"Oh! Brother look!" he exclaimed as he started walking over towards what was apparently an animal.

"Oh no, it's not another cat, is it?" Ed sighed, running after his brother.

Al slowly walked up to the animal and realized that it _was_ a cat. "Actually, it is." he laughed. Slowly, he walked up to the kitten and tried to lure it closer. "Here, kitty." he called out to it softly. At the sound of his voice, the kitten turned and bounded towards him, mewing happily. As the kitten came closer and Al could see it more clearly, he suddenly froze. The kitten was mahogany brown and fluffy, but what really caught Al's eye was the kitten's ears: they were tinted very slightly with a light blue color, almost the same way Kerria's hair was.

"Hey, Al!" Ed called, running up to him. "You know we can't keep--" he stopped in his tracks when he saw the kitten Al was holding in his arms.

"Brother," Al started, his voice slightly shaky. "Please…just this once…can I keep this one?"

Ed sighed, thinking that it must be fate. "Yeah, Al. You can keep this one."

* * *

**A/N: **Okay, to those of you who didn't like the sad ending, let me explain. I don't generally like it when stories have a sugary sweet ending that doesn't make sense at all, and I like endings that are good but dramatic, so that's what I went for with this story (and I think it came out pretty well, actually). BUT, I have decided that for those who want a happy ending, I will be making a sequel! So, don't worry, a happy ending is on it's way and I'll work on it ASAP, I promise! 

In the meantime, **please review**! Your feedback really helps me out a lot! Thank you!


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